The Twilight Wolf
by PrimalLonginus757
Summary: OC Team(s). A young faunus wants revenge against the White Fang, but an unexpected discovery puts new stakes on his journey. Lemons possible. Will update chapters when able to. Please enjoy :)
1. Chapter 1

_Ch. 1_

"You sure you don't wanna get paid?" The old farmer said in a western accent as he scratched his head in mild confusion. "This kind of job don't come cheap."

"I didn't say that I didn't want to get paid. I merely said that you don't have to pay me for this if you don't want to. I was just told you needed some assistance, so that's what I'm here for," Abaddon explained. Samuel didn't always listen to the things he said, so the boy had to repeat himself often. Abaddon had come to Samuel's farmhouse at a friend's request, saying that the old man would have a job that suited him. He walked across town to a bright blue two story farmhouse, where he found Samuel walking around in his dark blue overalls and brown boots, tending to his livestock. The old man had told him about a small band of grimm that had been wandering near his livestock for the last two weeks, sometimes even killing the animals.

"Well thanks kid, I didn't think I woulda found anyone who would take the job. I know yer a tough kid, but dealing with Grimm ain't no easy task." Samuel told him, but Abaddon had zoned out and was staring off into the distance. It wasn't until when Samuel whistled that Abaddon snapped back to attention. He wagged his wolf tail and his ears twitched as a sign that he was indeed listening.

"Sorry, my mind tends to wander off at the wrong times. But I don't have a problem dealing with Grimm. So what time do they usually come out?"

"Uhhh," Samuel scratched his bald head as he was thinking of an answer. "It's close to noon, and there's no exact time they like ta come but it tends ta be around sunset. So why don'tya come back around then alright." He gave Abaddon a pat on the shoulder before striding towards his farmhouse. "I'll see ya then."

"Okay, see ya then." Abaddon turned and made his way back across town. As he walked he looked around at the people, human and Faunus alike, going about their lives. Abaddon watched as children ran around with smiles on their faces and wonder in their eyes while their parents were either busy working or watching them. A few of them even waved at him for he had done tasks for them and many others who lived on Marrowshin, an island just south of Patch. The island in itself was pretty peaceful as Grimm encounters weren't always common.

In no time, Abaddon had reached his destination: An autumn red two story house with a bordered porch and above a railed balcony for the second story bedroom. A large oak tree stood near the house, with its branches reaching close enough to almost touch the balcony's rail.

Abaddon climbed up the oak tree and walked along the branch that extended to the 2nd floor. He leaped from the branch and landed softly on the solid oak floor.

"I wonder if anyone's home." There were was a wooden door that led into the house. Abaddon took a small silver key out of his pocket as he walked to the door, unlocked it, and slowly opened it.

The door led into a medium sized room with a single blue blanketed bed positioned on the far wall. On the right wall were two windows with a burgundy work desk positioned against the wall between them. On the left of the bed was a large black dresser and a tall lamp. There were also two doors on the left wall, the one furthest from Abaddon being the entrance to the stairs and the closes to him being the closet. There were also two large paintings, one above the bed and the other above the desk.

Abaddon walked deeper into the room and marveled at the two paintings. He had seen them plenty of times but he couldn't stop gazing at the craftsmanship. The painting above the bed showed a red robin with its child sitting on a small tree branch. It was a close up of the birds so you could see their feathers, the light reflecting off their black eyes, and how their feet gripped the wood.

Above the desk was a painting of a large oak that had each fourth of its two dimensional shape colored in a different season of the year. One portion had rain and cloudy skies for spring, another had bright green leaves and clear blue skies for summer, the next had orange and red falling leaves for autumn, and the final part showed the tree naked with snow covering its branches and the ground around it while under a star filled night sky. This was Abaddon's favorite one. " _She could really make a living out of this,_ " he thought

As he continued to stare at the artwork, his ears twitched. There was movement coming from behind him.

Suddenly, he felt someone jump onto his back and wrap their arms around his neck. It wasn't a choke hold, but a playful gesture, one he was all too familiar with.

"Abby! What are doing sneaking into my room?" Emma clung onto Abaddon's back and played with his messy black hair. He turned and walked in reverse until his legs touched the bed, then he deposited her on it with a small thump. Abaddon then sat down on the bed next to her.

"What, am I not welcome?" He asked with a smirk on his face. "Aren't you the one who sneaks into my tree house in the middle of the night?" He usually slept in a custom built tree house in the backyard whenever he wanted to get some fresh air for himself.

Emma Trennair was a cat faunus. She had short dark magenta hair with cat ears of the same color, dark green eyes, and fair skin. She wore a light green long sleeve shirt with black jeans and socks. Emma was only two years younger than him, but she could be very immature and childish at times for a 17 year old. They had known each other since they were babies and had always been close, almost inseparable. He thought of her as his sister and he her brother, which some would find weird due to the fact that it was like a cat/dog relationship. Although, they never cared.

Emma made a cute pouting face, using her cat ears to add to the effect. "Because you're my comfy puppy pillow. _And_ I know you don't mind anyway."

"Then I hope you don't mind me nibbling on your ears again." Abaddon began playing with her ears, pulling on them a bit before he actually bit them.

"Hey, that tickles!" She giggled as she tried pushing him away but he wouldn't budge.

She was telling the truth though. Abaddon didn't mind it when she would sleep in his treehouse, using his body as pillow. It was one of the many things he only let _her_ do, especially calling him _Abby._

Just then, there was the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs. "Emma you forgot your cookies downstairs." Emma's mother, Helena, entered the room. She was like an older version of Emma, but with long magenta hair that reached past her shoulders. She wore a knee length cream colored dress. In her hands was a platter of chocolate chip cookies. Abaddon could smell their scent and it made his stomach growl a bit.

"Oh hello Abaddon. I didn't know you were home. You could've walked through the front door ya'know?" She gave him a generous smile.

Abaddon shrugged. "I like to take the road less traveled."

"Well, here are some cookies for both of you to share." She walked over and placed the plate on Emma's desk. "Emma just made them a while ago and they are delicious. I managed to get them out of the kitchen before her father could eat most of them."

"Thanks mom." Emma hugged her mother and took a cookie from the plate. She took a bite and a look of satisfaction appeared on her face.

"Alright, if you two need me I'll be downstairs. I have to clean up the mishap your father made." Mrs. Trennair gave both Emma and Abaddon a kiss on their heads before heading downstairs.

Emma grabbed another cookie and shoved it into Abaddon's mouth. "Try it please." He couldn't tell whether it was a question or a playful command, but complied anyway and ate the cookie. It was really delicious and left him wanting more.

Before Emma knew it Abaddon had eaten four more cookies. She laughed at his greedy appetite. "Did you talk to Samuel about that job?"

Abaddon wiped the crumbs from his lips. "Yeah, thanks for the tip Emm. He wants me to go back to his farm at sunset to get rid of some Grimm that have been terrorizing his livestock."

"It's noon now and it usually gets to sunset at around 6." She told him then ate another cookie.

Abaddon let out a yawn before placing his hands behind his head and falling back on the bed. "I'll just take a little nap until then. Helps to be well rested."

"No Abby, stay awake." Emma started shaking him, but he wouldn't budge. Sleep was already crawling at his mind as he closed his eyes. The last thing he saw was Emma looking down on him with her cute pouting face and then sticking her tongue at him. He managed a chuckle before slumber took him.


	2. Chapter 2

_Ch. 2_

Abaddon awoke, staring at the ceiling. The room was pretty dark, but he recognized the faint light of a candle coming from the direction of Emma's desk. He felt well rested from his nap and the food helped to sweeten the deal. He sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

The sunlight shined through the windows at an angle and with such brilliance that meant one thing; It was sunset. Abaddon stood up and fixed his short sleeve black shirt and baggy blue jeans. He gazed towards the candlelit desk and saw that Emma was there. She had fallen asleep while working on something. He walked over and saw an unfinished painting on a pedestal in front of her. Only half the painting was done and it was the face of a black wolf with red eyes.

" _I wonder if that represents me in any way,_ " he thought.

Abaddon pulled Emma's chair back and picked her up in his arms. He walked over to the bed and put her down, pulling the blue blanket over her to keep her warm.

"I'll be back kitty." He gave her a quick kiss on her head before heading downstairs.

Abaddon walked downstairs into the kitchen. Everything was completely quiet. On the table was another plate of cookies along with a few pears, his backpack, and a note. He picked up the note, noticing Mrs. Trennair's handwriting. It read:

 _Went out to do some shopping with friends. Mr. Trennair should be home soon. The pears are for Abaddon and the cookies for you Emma. Be back soon._

 _-Mom_

The wolf faunus smiled. Pears were one of his favorite foods. He picked up the pears and put them in his back pack, then strapped the pack onto his back. He took three cookies from the plate before walking out the kitchen, through the living room, and out the front door. He locked the door behind him after he closed it.

"Should I go collect my gauntlets?" He said to himself. He was dealing with Grimm after all, but since Samuel said that there were only a few Abaddon decided against it. His brute strength alone would suffice. Then he started his trek back to Samuel's home.

Once he reached it, he knocked on the front door. There was a bit of commotion from inside before the old farmer himself opened the door. He wore a straw hat this time and instead of his blue overalls he had on a tan shirt with dirty brown cargos.

"Oh hey there bud. Glad you made it in time," he said relieved. "I was afraid you were gonna be a no show."

"Naw, I wouldn't abandon you like that." Abaddon gave him a thumbs up. "So where do the Grimm usually appear?"

"Come on," Sam said as he walked out the door and around the house. Abaddon followed him to the back where the crop field and animals were. "There." He pointed to the forest on the other side of the field. "They usually come out of that spot right there."

Abaddon took a look around. Samuel's farm was pretty small in length, but large in width with a wooden gate surrounding its entirety. Only a certain majority of it carried the crops he grew to sell on the market or feed the animals. There was a large barn on the far western side of the field. Also, none of the animals appeared to be out, not even the chickens.

"Where are the animals?" The boy asked.

Samuel pointed to the big red barn. "I herded them all into the barn so they wouldn't get in the way."

Abaddon saw no problem with the job, but due to the huge width of the field a Grimm could get past him and try to make a beeline for the house. One could even get into the town itself and hurt someone.

"Can you provide cover fire?" He asked.

Samuel nodded. "I've got a rifle in the house. I can shoot from the window there if any of em get too close." He tipped his head towards the open window behind him. Sam climbed through the window into the kitchen and sat in the chair he had positioned near it.

Abaddon stood against the wall to the right of the window. He took out one of his pears and begin eating as he waited. " _Sam might be hungry too,_ " he thought. He reached into his bag and pulled out the three cookies, holding them out in front of the window for Sam.

"You want some?" He asked. He didn't like being selfish with food, no matter how hungry he was.

Sam's hand reached up and grabbed the three cookies. "Don't mind I do bud. Thanks."

"No problem."

The duo ate their snacks as the sun continued to set over the western horizon. They waited for about 20 minutes until the familiar sound of growling made Abaddon's ears twitch. Looking across the yard to the trees, he saw the unmistakable red glare of several Grimm. They slowly crawled out of the darkness, like predators looking for game to chase. Their eyes were alight with hunger.

It was a small group: three beowulves and one Ursa Major. They started sniffing around, probably expecting to see the farm animals first. Abaddon had finished his snack a while ago and threw the finished remains, which bounced off one of the beowulves armored skulls. They froze, then set their sights on him.

The wolves growled and all began bounding towards the boy. Abaddon liked the challenge and charged towards them. When the first wolf was within range, he primed his left fist and punched it straight in the gut. The creature went flying back towards the trees. A second Beowulf lunged at Abaddon's right, claws outstretched. The boy kicked it, sending his right foot into the Grimm's chest. The strike put it in a daze.

Abaddon quickly grabbed one of its legs, picking it up and throwing it at another one of its incoming brethren. The impact sent them both spiraling towards the ground. "This is no fun. You guys are too weak. If only you were alphas, then it'd be an entertaining fight."

The beowulf he punched earlier came back for more. Abaddon dodged to the left, then grabbed its lower jaw. Before it could try to bite down, he ripped off the entirety of its bottom jaw and shoved it into the wolf's throat. The beowulf's body twitched for a bit before collapsing to the ground, dead.

The other two got back on their feet and charged.

Abaddon saw them and performed a roundhouse kick that sent one of them flying to the right. The other was punched directly in the face. He grabbed one of its arms and slammed it on the ground, then proceeded to stomp on its skull. The top portion of its head caved in and the wolf fell limp.

The last beowulf pounced on Abaddon from behind. He reacted by elbowing it in the snout. He turned around, flipped onto the wolf's back, and wrapped his arms around its throat. The beowulf began slashing and shaking its body, trying to get the faunus of its back.

 _SNAP!_

The beowulf's body fell to the ground. It's snapped neck cause its head to be positioned at an awkward angle. Abaddon stepped off its lifeless body and dusted himself off.

"I feel like I'm forgetting something," he said to himself.

"Lookout! Ursa!" Sam yelled.

"Dammit." Abaddon turned around, only to be hit full force by the ursa's huge left paw. The impact sent him flying through the air into the chicken coop with a loud crash. Broken wooden boards and hay lay everywhere, with Abaddon buried within.

Sam aimed his rifle at the ursa and fired, but the shot only managed to irritate it. The beast turned in his direction and roared, sprinting towards Sam at full speed.

"Just like dear old dad used ta say. Gotta get 'em right between the eyes." Sam fired four times, each bullet hitting the ursa in the armored head between its red eyes. Although, this had little effect and only served to piss it off even more.

Sam started to panic a bit. He kept firing at different places on the beast's body, but this did not halt its advance. Sam panicked even more when the rifle clip clicked empty. The ursa was almost upon him and he couldn't find any extra ammo clip close by.

The ursa came about 10 feet to the window when an outstretched hand grabbed it by the fur on its neck and used its momentum to toss the beast into the ruins of the already destroyed chicken coop.

"Let's see how you like it, bastard," Abaddon said as he brushed all the hay and chicken feathers out of his hair and clothes. "Are you alright Sam?"

Sam gave him a thumbs up, still a little shaken from what could've been his demise but was otherwise glad to see that Abaddon was on his feet.

Abaddon gazed back towards his opponent. The ursa was back on its feet. It shook the debris off its back, then quickly charged at Abaddon. It seemed hell-bent on finishing him.

Abaddon took a defensive stance, fists clenched in front of him. He waited until the beast was about two feet away from him, then gave it a sharp jab to its armored skull, cracking it. Abaddon sidestepped to the left as the beast skidded to a stop, feeling the wound on its head.

The boy walked over to its head and punched his left fist straight into its skull, killing it.

Abaddon then pulled his fist out of the ursa's cranium. Looking around him, he saw that the Grimms' bodies were already dissipating, there essence writhing from their bodies like black smoke. He walked back to the kitchen window to talk to Sam.

"Is that all of them?" He asked.

Sam scratched his head. "Yep, that's about it. Ya'know, you're like one of them huntsmen fellas. Killin Grimm for a living."

"I know, but it's not a living for me exactly. Not yet anyways," Abaddon replied.

"Wait right here." Sam retreated into the kitchen. Abaddon watched as he went through a couple of drawers in the kitchen, trying to find something most likely important. After rummaging for a few minutes, Sam came back to the window.

"Here you go. You said I didn't have to, but I wanted to give you something for your work." He handed Abaddon a stack of Lien.

Abaddon took it and counted 50 Lien in the stack. "Damn Sam, but wouldn't you need this to buy supplies? Especially for the chicken coop?"

"Naw bud, that's all yours. And as for the coop, I've been meanin to rebuild and repaint it for weeks now. Well, it's about time for my nap. You have a nice evening ma friend, and thanks again."

"Anytime Sam."

Sam gave Abaddon a friendly pat on the shoulder before shutting the window and closing the blinds. Abaddon made his way from the backyard to the front. He walked through town back to Emma's house and noticed a man with short red hair, blue eyes, a lean build, and wearing a green shirt with brown cargos standing on the porch. He was having a conversation with another gentleman.

"Mr. Trennair, how's it goin?" Abaddon waved at him as he approached the house.

Daniel Trennair, Emma's father, waved back. "Hey Abaddon. Out doing another job?"

Abaddon nodded. "Yeah, it was at old Sam's farm. Had to get rid of some Grimm. He even gave me 50 Lien afterwards."

Daniel smiled. "That's great son. Oh, also someone wants to speak with you. This is an old friend of mine from Vale." He gestured toward the man beside him.

The man standing before Abaddon was a tall old aged gentleman with short grey hair, glasses, and a dark green suit. He also had a cane, but clearly didn't need it. "Hello Mr. Rizer, my name is Professor Ozpin. Would you come inside with me? I have something important to discuss with you."


	3. Chapter 3

_Ch. 3_

"I must say, the way you handled that small pack of Grimm was impressive," Ozpin said. He and Abaddon were inside the Trennair house. They were seated at the kitchen table across from each other. Emma's father, Daniel, was standing near the counter making hot coffee.

"You saw that? The whole thing? Then how did you get here before me?" Abaddon thought he would've seen Ozpin on the way back. The man was faster than he looked, despite the cane he carried.

"I have my ways, but that does not matter. I have come to make an offer." Daniel placed a hot white mug of coffee in front of Ozpin. "Thank you Daniel."

"No problem Ozpin." Daniel took a seat at the table next to Abaddon. He also had a coffee mug in his hand and took a sip from it.

"What kind of offer?" Abaddon asked. He didn't know what to expect from Ozpin, but he hoped it was good news.

"From what I've seen concerning your fighting skills and the high amount of praise I've heard from other people around the island, you have the aptitude to become an adept huntsman. So I would like you to attend my school, Beacon Academy, where you will be taught to bring out your full potential." Ozpin took a small sip of his coffee. "What do you think young man?"

Abaddon scratched the back of his head, deep in thought. He wasn't expecting this, but it would be foolish to decline the offer. Both his father and Emma's parents attended Beacon, and Abaddon knew both of his parents would be proud of him for getting accepted. Although, he hadn't been to a combat school before like Emma and his other friends. He wasn't able to attend Altair Academy, the combat school present on the island, because of an accident involving the headmaster's son. As a result, Abaddon was forbidden to enter the school grounds and attained most of his current training from his grandfather and Emma's parents.

"Don't worry about combat school experience, it's not required. I know of your situation with Professor Linthrope. He was always the kind of individual to judge a book by its cover, and he wasn't very pleasant with every faunus he came across either. But rest assured, you've shown to have skill equal to a combat school student." Ozpin took another sip of coffee.

"Alright then, I accept your offer." Abaddon said with confidence.

"Me too." Emma appeared seemingly out of thin air. Abaddon had a startled look on his face, Daniel almost dropped his coffee mug, and Ozpin merely smiled kindly.

"She gets me every time," Daniel whined before steadying himself in his chair.

"What the hell Emma!" She always did that kind of thing around her friends and family, but only her mother was used to it and wouldn't show any signs of surprise whenever Emma tried to scare her.

Emma made a face at her brother. "Don't you dare leave me behind Abby. If you go, I go."

Ozpin cleared his throat, grabbing everyone's attention. "I've already taken care of that. I wouldn't have come without giving you the same offer Ms. Trennair. I have also taken the liberty of talking to your friends Kathleen and Jurano beforehand, who have also delightfully accepted. After all, what is a huntsman without his team?

"Thanks Professor." Abaddon and Ozpin shook hands.

"Eeeeeek!" Emma jumped on Abaddon and wrapped her arms around him tightly. She was excited not only to be going to one of the most prestigious combat schools in Remnant, but to also be accompanied by her closest friends.

"Alright kitty, calm down." Abaddon wrapped his arm around her in response to her clinging hug.

Daniel stood up and rustled Emma's hair. "Congratulations honey. Your mother's gonna be proud when she hears this."

Ozpin drank a long sip from his mug. "I suggest you two go ahead and pack your luggage. We leave for Vale first thing in the morning."

 ** _XXXXXXX_**

"Yo bro, wake up. It's the first day of class." Jurano was shaking Abaddon as he slept in his bed.

It had been two days since they left home. The first day at Beacon was quiet since only very few students and the teachers were there. It was also that day that they met their first huntsmen team, Team CFVY. They managed to get along well with the second years, but they couldn't hang out for long due to preparations and other incoming freshman. They were also given their school uniforms, their schedules, and their scrolls.

"Abaddon, get up!" Jurano yelled into his ear for extra effect, but the wolf faunus only stirred a bit.

"Five more minutes." Abaddon uttered. He wasn't ready for class, nor did he want to wear the uniform. He thought that if he could just stay in bed, his team would go on without him and he wouldn't have to do anything.

Jurano wasn't sure of what else to do. He was lost in thought for a moment before coming up with an idea. It was risky, but he thought it might work. "You've forced my hand dude."

Jurano reached down, grabbed Abaddon's black tail, and gave it a hard yank.

Abaddon's eyes flew open at the sudden pain in his tail. He quickly jumped up and stood in Jurano's face, pointing a finger into his friend's chest.

"You remember the rule about my tail right?" He growled in his best friend's face, glaring dagger's at him.

The green haired boy had his hands up. "Sorry man, sorry, but you wouldn't get up. Kathleen told me to wake you and she said she would have my hide if I didn't. Besides, we have to get ready for class."

"Alright, alright, I'll get dressed," Abaddon grumbled. He walked over to the trunk at the foot of his bed, his folded uniform lying on top of it. It consisted of a black suit lined with gold, along with a blue vest, white shirt, red tie, and black shoes.

Much to his dismay, Abaddon put on his uniform, but had trouble putting the tie on. As he struggled, Jurano sat on his bed and silently laughed.

"Not funny bro. You know I don't do ties," Abaddon said after he saw Jurano's face.

"Hey, I'm not the one wrestling with the red 'snake' around my neck." Jurano continued to laugh at Abaddon's expense.

Just then, Kathleen and Emma came out of the bathroom. Their uniforms were similar to the boys, but it included a brown jacket, tan vest, white shirt, red plaid skirt, a red ribbon instead of a tie, and black stockings. Kathleen had just finished putting her long purple hair into a ponytail using a black bow when she noticed Abaddon having trouble with his tie.

"I knew you were gonna have trouble with that. Here, let me help you." Kathleen went up to him and fixed the tie in the correct fashion. When she finished, Abaddon noticed she was blushing a little. HE didn't know why but decided not to say anything about it and merely smiled at her.

"Thanks Kat," Abaddon said. "So what's the agenda today, what classes do we have?"

Kathleen checked her scroll for her schedule. "We all have the same classes. So far we have Grimm Studies, Remnant History, and Combat Class. Its 7:30, so we have about an hour and a half till class starts at 9:00."

After hearing that, Abaddon's eyes widened. "You're telling me that you woke me up an hour and a half before we actually have to go to class?!"

Kathleen responded with a smile and a nod.

"I'm goin back to sleep," Abaddon said plainly as he lay back on his bed. Kathleen crossed her arms and sighed.

"It's alright. We don't expect you to be awake anyway. I bet you couldn't even stay up for Grimm studies," Emma teased, sticking her tongue out at him.

Abaddon's wolf ears perked up after hearing her. He quickly sat up in his bed and faced her. "Is that a challenge Kitty? Is that what you want?" He may have no valuable patience for his classes, but he was always up for a challenge.

Emma winked at her brother with confidence. "Sure is Abby. I bet that you'll fall asleep before lunch. And if I win, you get to be my personal slave for the rest of the semester .You'll be carrying my books, bringing me food every day, and be used as my personal pillow." Emma seemed to smile maniacally for a second. When they saw her face, Jurano and Kathleen laughed.

"But he's already you're personal pillow. You use him as a cushion almost every night," Kathleen mused.

Abaddon was unfazed. He knew Emma better than anyone, so what she said wasn't a surprise to him. He knew just the right way to push her buttons, so he would have the upper hand in the end.

"Alright, but if you so happen to fall asleep before I do, then I have to enact the 'Psycho Protocol,' if you know what I mean." Emma and Kathleen were confused by Abaddon's words, but Jurano literally burst out with laughter. He was laughing hard enough to be on the verge of tears.

Emma looked at both boys in confusion. "Wait, what's the Psycho Protocol? Is it something I should be afraid of?"

"Trust me, if both Abaddon and Jurano came up with it, then there is reason to be afraid," Kathleen said to her.

"Well, what would I have to do Abby?" Emma asked. She was a bit scared of what would happen, but she was willing to prove that she was as daring as they were.

"We'll tell you after the winner is decided." Abaddon carried a huge smirk on his face. "Do we have a deal Emm?"

Emma looked up at Kathleen, who shrugged in response. ' _It can't be that bad. Abby always goes easy on me. Jurano's probably just laughing to make me chicken out,'_ she thought. Hopefully it was a bluff and Abaddon would just ask her to make him a batch of cookies.

With her mind made up, Emma looked at her brother with a smirk of her own. "It's a deal."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

As Professor Port was giving his lecture, about himself in his 'glory days', Kathleen tried her hardest to pretend that she was listening. Although, both Abaddon and Emma were quietly snoozing to her right and his tail had been swaying back and forth since the beginning of class, brushing her side. Of the two, Emma had gone down first. She came in strong in the beginning, but Kathleen could see her wearing down in their previous class. Then, as Professor Port started his speech, she was out like a light. Abaddon followed suit a few minutes later and now they were lying on the desk, heads down, with Emma using Abaddon as a pillow like she usually did.

Kathleen continued to listen to Port's 'self-absorbed' story about how he fought a Beowulf with his bare hands. _'Yet Abaddon's already done that and more. If this is Grimm Studies, then why is he babbling on about his 'adventurous' youth? No wonder those two went to sleep.'_

Kathleen looked to her left where Jurano was sitting and saw that he was listening to music on his red earbuds, also pretending to be interested in Port's lecture. His red and white headphones sat around his neck since he couldn't really hide them from the teachers.

Kathleen looked back at Abaddon, witnessing his ears twitch. She scratched his left ear, which caused him to stir a bit.

' _He looks so peaceful when he's sleeping. I wonder what sound he makes when I stroke his tail.'_ Kathleen was curious about that, but the other reason was to make him stop brushing against her side. She slowly reached for his tail, all the while taking glances at him to see if he was awake. She managed to lightly grab it and stroked the obsidian black fur. It was soft to the touch, and she felt his tail move to acknowledge her hand.

Although, when she glanced at Abaddon, she noticed his left eye was wide open and he was staring dead at her! She started to back her hand away, giving him an apologetic expression, but then he smiled and shifted himself closer to her seat, laying his tail right in her lap. Surprised by this, Kathleen merely sighed as she continued to stroke his tail while he went back to sleep. It was a good distraction from her boredom.

The class lasted for another half hour before the bell rang. Professor Port stopped his lecture and laughed heartily. "Oh, looks like I'll continue my tale tomorrow. You're all dismissed."

Jurano heard the bell through his earphones and took them off. "Man that was some story. I didn't think another teacher could be even more boring than the ones back home." He put his earbuds in his pocket and donned his headphones.

Kathleen stood up from her chair and shook Emma. "Emma, it's time for lunch. Let's go."

Emma woke up and rubbed her eyes. "Did I win?" she asked.

Kathleen and Jurano laughed, but before they could say anything Emma interrupted them. "I knew I would win! Abby, wake up, your my eternal slave now!" She shook Abaddon until he awoke with a yawn and stood up.

"Huh? What happened?" he asked. He looked around and saw that the classroom was empty. "Oh it must be time to eat. I'm starving." Abaddon was about to walk out the room when Emma teleported right in front of him, carrying a mound of books in her arms.

"Not so fast Abby. You lost the bet, and now I order you to carry everyone's books back to our dorm. Be sure to put mine on my bed nice and neat." Emma pushed the mound of books they had into Abaddon's hands and began walking out the room. She couldn't help but smile at the fact that she beat him. She wanted to jump around for joy, but there would be time for that later.

As she left, Kathleen and Jurano followed, with Abaddon being the last to leave the room. As the others went left down the hallway, he went right. He didn't want to carry their books all the way to their room, but he never went back on his word, and so continued forward.

Abaddon made his way to his team's dorm and took out his scroll with his right hand to open the door. He went in and placed their books on the floor next to Emma's bed. He exited the room and closed the door behind him, then started to make his way to the lunchroom.

"Excuse me!" said a voice coming from behind. Just as Abaddon turned around someone crashed right into him, sending both Abaddon and the other student to the floor.

"Damn, who was that?" Abaddon asked as he stood up and gazed towards the other person. On the ground was another student: a girl with lilac eyes and long, unruly blonde hair.

"Sorry about that. Kinda in a hurry to get to my team." She said with a bright smile.

"Same here," Abaddon said. "You okay?" He held out his right hand, which she took, and pulled her up to her feet.

"Am I okay? What about you? I'm the one who crashed into you." The girl didn't understand why he was acting as if she was the only one hurt.

"I'm fine, trust me." Abaddon gave her a thumbs up. "I'm Abaddon Rizer by the way. From team KAJE."

"Yang Xiao Long. Team RWBY," she replied. "Hey, why don't you join me and my team at lunch? It's nice to make new friends."

Abaddon smiled. "Sure."

He and Yang then made their way through the school to the cafeteria. The room was huge with students sitting at rectangular tables that stretched the lunch room's width and tall windows lining the far wall. Yang and Abaddon grabbed their lunches and began searching for their teams.

"You see them yet?" Abaddon asked.

"Nnnnope," Yang answered.

After a couple of minutes of searching, Yang saw the unmistakable red cape that her sister usually wears. "I found them!" Yang exclaimed.

Abaddon gazed where she was looking and saw a little girl with short red tinted black hair. Beside her, he caught sight of a pair of magenta colored cat ears.

"My team's sitting right beside yours," he pointed out.

Yang laughed. "Well, isn't that a happy coincidence. Come on, we should introduce everyone." She grabbed Abaddon by the arm and pulled him towards their friends. Once they made their way there, Yang let go of him and hugged the little girl with the red hood.

"I'm back Rubes." Yang was crushing the girl, who seemed to be trying to get away.

"Yang, I can't breathe!" The little girl's voice was raspy from lack of air.

Yang let go of her teammate, who gasped as air flew back into her lungs. "Oops. Sorry Ruby," she apologized. She then looked at Abaddon. "You said your team was nearby right?"

Abaddon turned to his left and saw Emma. She had her head propped up on her arm and was trying not to fall back to sleep. Abaddon crept up behind her and yelled, "Emma!"

Startled, Emma jumped up from her seat. "It wasn't me!" Realizing where she was, Emma faced Abaddon and lightly punched him in the chest. "Don't do that!"

"Hahaha, but I couldn't help it," Abaddon told her.

Before Emma could say anything else, she noticed Yang standing next to him. "Abby, who's that?"

"And why is she hanging with you? Look at that beauty! She's way out of your league," Jurano chimed. Kathleen and Emma giggled at Jurano's joke while Abaddon flicked him off.

"Are you making friends without us?" Yang's red caped teammate stood near them, along with two other girls who were part of their team.

"Ok, introduction time. I'm Yang, and these are my teammates Ruby, Weiss, and Blake. Together we make team RWBY."

Ruby was a small girl with short black hair that had red highlights on the ends, silver eyes, and a red hooded cape. "Hi," she said in an energetic, childish tone. To Abaddon she looked too young to be a student at Beacon.

Weiss was a girl with snow white hair put in an offset ponytail and light blue eyes. She also had a scar over her left eye. "Pleasure to meet you," she said cheerfully.

Then there was Blake. She had a light complexion with long wavy black hair, a purple bow on her head, and amber eyes with purple eyeshadow. "Hey," she said with a small smile on her face.

Abaddon noticed her bow slightly twitching and he moved his wolf ears in response. Blake must have seen him because she then moved behind Weiss. He became curious, but decided to look into it later as it was his turn for introductions.

"Well, my name is Abaddon. Yang, you already know that. These are my friends Emma, Jurano, and Kathleen." In response to Abaddon's introduction, Emma stuck her tongue out at Ruby, Jurano stood up and bowed, and Kathleen smiled and waved.

Abaddon then turned to Weiss. "Hey Weiss, isn't you last name Schnee?"

"Why yes it is. Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company." Weiss seemed to take pride in that title, maybe a little too much pride

"My grandfather has told me things about you. He said that you were a beautiful and talented young lady with a bright future," he said to her.

Weiss blushed at the compliment.

"Did he mention bossy and somewhat bratty?" Yang chimed in with a smirk.

Weiss glared at the blonde. "Quiet you. At least someone is being a polite gentleman today. By the way Abaddon, who is your grandfather? Does he work for the company?"

Abaddon nodded. "Nope, he works for the Atlas military along with Ironwood. His name is General Heracles Vesuvius."

When Weiss heard that, she froze in astonishment. "What? Are you kidding? THE General Vesuvius!?"

Abaddon nodded. He was surprised by Weiss' reaction, given that to him the old man was just his ordinary grandfather. He didn't see anything celebrity wise, besides the fact that he worked alongside Ironwood to command the strongest military on Remnant.

Yang shrugged. "What's so special about him?"

"He's easily considered the strongest man on Remnant!" Weiss blurted out.

"Woww, he must drink a lot of milk," Ruby said.

"Ehh, I bet I could take him." Yang flexed her right arm, showing off how great her confidence was. Abaddon thought about what would happen if she actually fought his grandfather, but he also felt bad considering her pride would crushed by the old man's humongous strength.

Jurano whistled in order to grab team RWBY's attention. "Umm, Yang. You don't wanna tangle with the old man."

"Why not?" Yang said. She was totally clueless as to why they were riled up by this one old man. What exactly did he do to gain his title?

Before Abaddon could answer Yang's question, Emma jumped on his back. "We'll tell you later. Right now my eternal slave needs to take me to bed." She yawned loudly in Abaddon's ear.

"Wow, the girl's got a slave. What did you do for that to occur Fido?" Yang asked.

"It's a long story," Abaddon replied.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute." Jurano held his hands up. "Sorry Emma, but I've gotta stop you there. You see, you didn't actually win this bet."

Kathleen gave Emma a sad look and nodded in agreement. "It's true Emma. You fell asleep before Abaddon did in Port's class. Sorry."

Hearing this, Emma slid off Abaddon's back in defeat. She thought she had won. She thought she had finally gotten an edge on Abaddon, but she should've known that it was too good to be true. She looked down at the floor, but quickly lightened up when Abaddon stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

Emma gazed up at Abaddon. "Sooo, what do I have to do?"

Abaddon gave Jurano a wide smirk. "Jurano, if you please."

Jurano proceeded to pull a hidden scroll from within his uniform. "I sometimes keep the list with me in case this happens."

"Wait, what's going on?" Blake asked, looking suspiciously at the scroll.

Kathleen explained the situation to team RWBY, which caused Yang to chuckle a bit.

Weiss and Blake were a bit confused. "But what's this 'Psycho Protocol?" Weiss asked.

Kathleen shrugged. "Beats me, but since the boys created it I have to guess its bad news."

Jurano tossed the scroll to Emma. "Go ahead and look through it. Each task is labeled either by day or week, and the later ones might be even worse than the last."

Emma opened the scroll and as she read through it, her eyes began to widen in terror. When she finished looking through it, she looked up at Abaddon and quickly asked, "Can I choose something else?"

"Nope. You agreed to this. Now you gotta go with the flow," said Abaddon.

Emma looked back at the scroll and gulped. Some of things on the list were doable, while others were very, very questionable.

"Alright, well we gotta study for class. We'll catch you later girls." Abaddon picked Emma up and placed her on his back. She still had a worried look on her face, but still wrapped her arms around Abaddon's neck as he walked out of the cafeteria with his lunch in hand.

"Is Emma going to be ok?" Ruby asked curiously.

"Yeah she'll be fine. Abaddon and Jurano like to kid around with me and Emma all the time." Kathleen then gave Jurano a small punch to his shoulder.

"It's just a gag joke. Don't worry, the list was actually created by our friend Jack. He has written and done every single task on that list. We never meant for anyone to try them, just to hold on to a copy in case Jack ever loses his," Jurano assured them. "We'll talk to you lovely ladies later." He and Kathleen then followed their friends out of the lunch room.

"What do you think their friend wrote on that list?" Blake asked. Just looking at the scroll gave her bad vibes.

Yang happily shrugged. "Beats me. Could be anything I guess, but I wouldn't mind trying something crazy."

"Only a maniac like you would Yang," Weiss chimed in.

"From the look on Emma's face, they must be pretty horrid. I hope I don't get tricked into doing anything related to that list," Ruby said as team RWBY left for their dorm as well.


	4. Chapter 4

_Ch. 4_

 _Fire, that's all there was, fire. The entire village was bathed in red flames. People ran about, screaming in terror, chased by creatures in black with red hungry eyes. Deformed monsters that attacked any living thing in sight. The people of the village tried to escape, but a few were unlucky. And amidst all that chaos was a little 10 year old girl with magenta hair. She was sitting on the ground, crying with her hands covering her face._

" _Emma! Emma, we have to go," said a familiar voice._

 _Emma looked up and saw a black haired boy with red eyes looking down at her. "I'll get you out of here, just take my hand. We'll go together." Abaddon held out his open hand towards her._

 _Emma reached out to grab her friend's hand, but this relief was short-lived. She closed her eyes for a few seconds and when she opened them, Abaddon still stood there, but with bleeding gashes all over his body. His eyes were glazed over and blood dribbled from his nose and mouth. Then, his body jolted when a long crimson red blade stabbed through his heart._

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

Emma woke with a start. She almost screamed and managed to stifle it when she came to, but that didn't stop the heavy amount of sweat that covered her face, neck, and chest. Emma was sleeping on Abaddon like she usually did and saw that she had completely drenched his black night shirt. She reached towards the small desk under the window and turned on a small lamp, then she got up and was about to change when she heard his voice.

"Another nightmare?"

Emma looked up to see Abaddon wide awake. "Yeah. How long have you been awake?" she asked.

"Since you started sweating rivers on my chest," he chuckled. He pulled his shirt off and threw it on the floor. The many scars on his arms and chest were visible for Emma to see. Seeing them reminded her of bad times in the past, something she didn't like to think about.

"Oh." Emma blushed while looking down. "Well, uhm, I'm gonna take this thing off. It's really uncomfortable when it's wet," she said. Emma took off her green knee length blouse and was wearing a violet colored bra with small black shorts. She used her blouse as a towel to wipe off the rest of her sweat, and then threw the blouse on her bed.

As Abaddon gazed at Emma, he couldn't help but slightly blush. Even though she kind of acted like a child at times, he didn't forget that she was still 17 and had a nice figure.

Emma then went back to using Abaddon as her pillow. "You don't mind this do you?" she asked him. This wasn't the first time she had slept on him like this. She was practically half naked, plus she didn't want him to feel uncomfortable or for things to get weird between them. He was the one she trusted the most. They were like brother and sister, yet he almost always let her do what she wanted.

"No, I don't mind. You think I'd feel weird about this? It's not the first time you know," Abaddon told her. "My priority right now is to make sure you get some sleep."

"Sorry for waking you up at, like, 4 in the morning," Emma apologized.

"It's alright, plus it is Friday. But I need you to go to sleep, and don't worry about your nightmares. You can tell me about them later. Now goodnight kitten. Love you." After saying that, Abaddon gave her quick kiss on the head and went back to sleep.

Emma meowed in response and nuzzled her head against Abaddon's chin. She closed her eyes and this time descended into a sweet, blissful dream.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Damn, that hammer packs a punch," said Cardin Winchester as he limped from the stage in defeat. He had just gone up against Nora Valkyrie. Nora basically wailed on him with her hammer, Magnhild, during the entirety of the match and Cardin was unable to keep up as he was pounded into the floor.

They were in the afternoon combat class in the amphitheater, which was taught by Glenda Goodwitch, Ozpin's assistant. Abaddon loved this class since not only would he get to test his might against other students but also because he didn't have to wear that damn school uniform. Just about everyone was dressed in their usual combat gear.

He wore a black V-neck hoodie that had dark red and white lining on the v, along the sleeves, and on the hood with black fingerless gloves covering the wraps on his arms, a red and white undershirt, ash black cargo pants, and red, black, and white shoes that covered the wraps on his feet.

Kathleen wore a sleeveless black body suit under a purple short sleeved one piece jacket with grey line patterns, black and grey fingerless gloves, light grey arm vambraces, two black belts crisscrossing over her waist, a necklace with a yellow star pendant, and dark grey heeled combat boots.

Jurano had on a short sleeve dark green and brown shirt, red and greyish brown cargo shorts, brown shoes, brown armbands, and a detached red hood with white designs.

Emma had on a sleeveless long cream jacket with brown straps instead of a zipper with the portion above the breasts cut off. It was parted at the bottom to show off a bit of her midriff. Under this was a blue green collared top that covered the missing upper portion of her jacket. She also wore dark brown fingerless gloves with black extensions that reached up her arms, black shorts with a brown belt, and dark brown shin high combat boots.

During the matches in combat class, Glynda would decide a student's grade by how skillfully, quickly, and efficiently they could take out their opponent. "Thank you Ms. Valkyrie, but I would suggest you come up with a more viable strategy than just simply smashing your enemy repeatedly."

"Will do," Nora said as she exited the stage, collapsing Magnhild into its grenade launcher form. She walked over to where teams KAJE, RWBY, and the rest of team JNPR stood. Nora gave everyone a wide smile as she stood with her friends.

"That was great Nora, you almost killed him," Jurano joked with a thumbs up.

"Why did you stand over him with that pose?" Weiss asked. She thought that Nora using Cardin as a monument was a bit unnecessary.

"Because she's the queen of the fucking castle. Don't you know that Weiss?" Abaddon said, earning a few laughs from the group.

Weiss huffed while Nora gave him an evil smirk. "You better believe it big boy," she said.

Abaddon and his friends had just met Nora's team, JNPR, two days ago during lunch. Her team members were Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, and their leader, Jaune Arc.

"Alright students, this will be the last match for today." Glynda began pressing on her handheld touchpad to randomly select two students.

Jaune had his fingers crossed. "I hope it's not me today," he said.

On the screens above the stage, two images popped up along with a long green bar that indicated the student's aura level.

"Blake Belladonna…and Abaddon Rizer."

Abaddon gazed at Blake. "Ready to put on a show?" he asked as he bowed for her to go first.

Blake smiled at the gesture as she walked up to the stage first with Abaddon coming up behind her. They each stood on opposite sides of the arena then turned to face each other and unsheathed their weapons.

Blake held her Gambol Shroud, a black katana with a gun built into the hilt and a cleaver like sheathe that could be used in a dual wield fashion. Abaddon carried his Obsidian Fangs, which were dark red gauntlets that each held two black short swords. Although, he reached with his right hand to his left gauntlet and pulled out only one sword. The lights around the room dimmed until only the stage was lit, allowing the two students to focus on each other.

"Begin!"

Blake made the first move as she charged at and slashed horizontally with her katana. Abaddon blocked this with his sword, and pushed her back. Blake charged again, but this time when she struck Abaddon swung his sword. Blake used her semblance to create a shadow clone as she jumped into the air and threw her sword, which was in its sickle form, at him to wrap around his arm. Abaddon saw this coming and grabbed hold of the ribbon the sickle was attached to. He pulled Blake out of the air towards him. Blake was prepared to kick him, but Abaddon sidestepped to the left and hit her with a palm strike to the stomach. Blake went flying a bit through the air, almost hitting the stage wall.

Blake quickly landed on her feet and took her battle stance. Abaddon charged towards Blake with his sword held back for a quick jab when out the corner of his eye he caught sight of something, something he thought he left behind a long time ago. Blake noticed that he was distracted and took this chance to get a few hits in. When he was close, she slashed at his aura a couple of times before sending him back a few feet with a backflip kick to his chin. Abaddon slowly pulled his head back down, and when he did Blake saw something that scared her a bit.

The sclera of Abaddon's left eye was partially black. It looked like a creeping darkness that was threatening to consume his sight. Although, she had no time to ponder this as Abaddon dashed towards her with tremendous speed. He was so fast that Blake barely managed to avoid his sword. She jumped back to gain distance, only for him to appear to her right and hit her with another palm strike. This sent her flying into the wall with a loud thump. Blake fell to the floor. She tried to get up, but saw that Abaddon was standing over her with his sword pointed towards her neck.

"That'll be enough. Abaddon Rizer is the victor," said Glynda. The lights of the amphitheater returned to their former state.

When Abaddon's eye returned to normal, he shook his head and looked Blake in the eyes. All he saw was concern, with a small tinge of fear. He felt bad for using that much strength on Blake, especially since it was only a class match up and not an actual fight.

He helped Blake up to her feet. "Sorry about that. I just got a little carried away."

"It's alright, but you seemed distracted for a bit," Blake said. She thought whatever he saw must've triggered something in his head.

Glynda walked up to the pair to tell them her assessment of their battle. "Ms. Belladonna, you're quick on your feet, but it seems your strategy is based on the attack with evasive maneuvers. That gives you opponent several openings to execute what could be a decisive strike. Although, you do show adept use with your semblance. As for you Mr. Rizer, you have a remarkable amount of speed and strength, especially during that last part of the match. Even so, you failed to take things seriously and was distracted enough to allow your opponent to land a few strikes. I suggest you to actually 'try' next time."

Both of the faunus nodded.

Glynda then turned to the other students in the room. "Alright class, that'll be all for today. Let the battles you've seen here be a reminder to train you skills often. You're dismissed."

As all the other students started to leave, Blake and Abaddon joined their friends.

"You were great Blake. Way to go!" Ruby chimed in excitement.

"Abby still won though," Emma added, sticking her tongue out at Ruby, who did the same thing.

"Awww puppy, did the kitty push your buttons?" Yang teased, poking Abaddon's nose.

"Yeah, you looked kinda….pissed," Jaune added.

"No, just got carried away is all." Although, Abaddon's mind was troubled by what he saw: glowing amber eyes. He recognized those eyes, and he had hoped he wouldn't see them again.

As they all walked out of the auditorium down the hall, Abaddon noticed Blake was hanging back. He slowed down until he was right beside her.

"Abaddon, what was with your eye? And what did you see in the crowd that distracted you?" She stayed back so she could ask him that herself without the others chiming in, especially Yang. The darkness that she had seen crawling over his left eye seemed really unusual. Abaddon wasn't surprised that she noticed, in the short time their teams had been friends he knew she could see details that others would normally miss.

"It's just part of my semblance is all," he lied. "Nothing to worry about. And as for what I saw, it was just, uhhh, an old friend in the crowd. I failed to notice her until then so it kinda caught me by surprise." He scratched his head and slightly chuckled.

Blake could see through his lie, but decided not to push it. He might be waiting for the right time to say something. She just hoped that whatever it was happened to be good news instead of bad.

"Well our friends are probably wondering why we stayed behind, so let's pick up the pace shall we," Abaddon said smiling.

Blake smiled back. "Sure," she said as they both began to catch up with their friends.


	5. Chapter 5

_Ch. 5_

Since it was now Saturday, Team RWBY along with Abaddon, Kathleen, and Emma decided to go into the city of Vale to relax. They left Jurano behind as he had a study date with Velvet in the school library. His team didn't know how he managed it, given his past bad luck with women but decided not to question.

As Abaddon and the girls went into town, they visited several clothing stores to try on different outfits, and a bookstore for Blake to get new volumes of her favorite book, whose title she hid from the others. It was in the first clothing store that the girls picked out clothes for Abaddon as a way to embarrass him, which worked since one of the outfits they tricked him into wearing was a clown's outfit that Yang had found. Although, he got his revenge by stealing Emma, Ruby, and Yang's bras. Both Abaddon and a female store clerk found this hilarious when the girls came out their stalls to chase him while trying to hide their breasts. Then a trio of boys nearby decided to make a wrong move by peaking in the dressing room from hearing all the noise and managed to pinch both Ruby and Emma's asses. When Yang flicked them off and Emma hissed, one of the boys called them 'feisty little bitches.' This prompted Abaddon to grab the kid by his neck and throw him out of the dressing room and through several stacks of clothes. Emma and Ruby were grateful, but the store manager wasn't, and they were promptly kicked out.

The girls were now in their third store, hanging out in the girl's dressing room. Weiss and Kathleen were gazing in the mirror at the outfits they were currently trying on, Yang and Emma were trying to convince Ruby to get into the dressing room again, and Blake sat in a chair nearby reading her newly acquired book.

"How do we look?" Weiss asked. She was wearing a dark blue sleeveless dress that ended at her knees and had ripples going down the length of the dress. Kathleen wore a black shin length dress with short sleeves and a grey corset around her midriff.

"Oooo, lookin good Weiss," Yang said with a thumbs up.

"You should keep that dress Kat," Emma beamed. She was still struggling to pull Ruby into the dressing room. Ruby was trying her hardest to get away, but every time she managed to slip out of Emma's grasp, the cat faunus simply teleported near Ruby and grabbed her again.

"Noooo, what if someone pinches me again or takes my bra," Ruby whined. Yang grabbed her sister by her hood and dragged her into an empty dressing room.

"Don't worry Rubes, that won't happen again. Plus I've already got something for you to try on." Yang closed the door behind them, and after a series of yelps and complaints, Yang opened the door again to reveal what she had done. Ruby came out wearing a red knee length dress with black stockings and black trim. The straps of the dress went over her shoulders and crossed at the back and she wore a dark jean jacket over it.

Weiss looked at her partner with a look of interest. "You look fine Ruby," she said with a smile.

"I don't know…" Ruby whined, but then Kathleen pushed her over to the mirror to see herself. Ruby's face lit up in excitement. "Woooowwwww."

"Seeee, now it's my turn!" Emma picked up an outfit she laid out on a chair and rushed in one of the dressing rooms.

Ruby was still looking in the mirror and talking to Weiss and Yang about whether she wanted to buy the outfit or not. Kathleen was busy admiring her dress, twirling around in it a bit to get a good feel out of wearing it.

"Hey Kathleen, you got a minute?" said Blake. She had finally looked up from her book to see that Kathleen was alone.

Kathleen went over to Blake and sat in a chair next to her. "Sure Blake, what's up?"

"It's about the match I had with Abaddon the other day. After I kicked him in the chin, when he looked back at me, the sclera of his left eye. It was turning black. When I asked him about, he said it was because he got carried away. Do you know the real reason why?" Blake asked her.

Kathleen's face donned a worried expression. "Well, usually when he gets hit with a surprise attack or when something greatly irritates him, his sclera in both eyes turn black. That's usually a sign that he's done holding back. I was worried that he could've broken something, like your arm or leg. He would've felt very bad if he did since he hates to lose control around his friends and innocent people."

Blake understood what Kathleen was saying and laid a hand on her shoulder. "It's fine. It didn't happen, so there's nothing to really worry about." Then Blake looked around the dressing room. "Where did he go anyway?"

"He said he had to go call his parents, but he looked worried so I just told him to tell them I said hi," Ruby added.

"Hmph, Fido's feeling bad huh? Maybe I'll go cheer him up," Yang said with her arms crossed. She began walking out of the dressing room and towards the front door.

"Thanks Yang, but we know what he's doing, not where he went," Kathleen called out.

"No probs, I'll be back," Yang replied before exiting the store. She stood on the sidewalk and looked left and right. "Ok Fido, where'd you go?"

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

The sun began to set on the city as the late hours came closer. The rays of Remnant's star painted the sky in yellow, orange, and purple while the black silhouettes of birds flew about in the breeze. Abaddon sat on one of the tallest building in the vast city just to catch the view. The air was nice and the city was beautiful, peaceful, just like his hometown. His mind was lost until his scroll vibrated in his pocket.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Abaddon reached into his pocket and grabbed his scroll. He pulled it out and saw 'Grandpa' displayed on the screen. He pressed on the screen to answer. The face of an elderly man with short and spiky grey and black hair, dark yellow eyes, and a strong set jaw appeared on the screen.

"Hey gramps, how's it goin?" Abaddon asked his grandfather.

"Doing absolutely fine, thanks for asking grandson. It's good to hear your voice. After I was told by Emma's parents that you and the others were attending Beacon, I couldn't wait to call you. Hey, be sure to put what your parents and I taught you into effect. With your training, you should be able to take on even the upperclassmen," his grandfather said.

"Yeah, I've seen many skilled huntsmen in training, but I don't think I'll have any trouble. Plus, the headmaster isn't an asshole like Altair academy's was," Abaddon joked.

"Haha, I'm sure about that. Ozpin is a good man, one of my most trusted colleagues. And also…Oh! It seems your parents would like to talk to you." Vesuvius' face moved out of sight and was replaced by two other people. One was a male with short brown hair, a light beard, tan skin, and black eyes while the other was a female with long black hair, wolf ears, red orange eyes, fair skin, and a rather large smile on her face.

Abaddon smiled. "Hey mom, hey dad."

"Hey son," said Abaddon's father, Selmon, "Glad to see you."

"Glad to see you guys too," the boy replied.

"Oh my gosh, I still can't believe my baby's finally in combat school! And it's Beacon Academy!" screamed Abaddon's mother, Xahnara.

Abaddon chuckled at his mother's squeals.

Selmon grabbed hold of his wife. "We're just very proud of you son, is all. We thought you'd never go to combat school unless we made you."

"Don't you mean unless 'mom' made me?" Abaddon said with emphasis.

Selmon shrugged while Xahnara chuckled. "You bet your ass I would. I was just about to go straight to Marrowshin and teach you a lesson." She then flexed her left bicep to further push emphasis into her point.

"Well, at least now you don't have to that," Abaddon added. He had no doubts that his mother would do just that. She was the one who taught him hand to hand combat when he was little.

"So how's Beacon been treating you son?" Selmon asked.

Abaddon thought of where he wanted to start. "Well, the headmaster is pretty cool. The campus is huge and Kathleen, Jurano, Emma and I are in a team called KAJE. Ozpin made me the leader."

"I'm not surprised since when you were little, you lead those three in your plan to take my cupcakes from the pantry, even after I locked it," his mother added. "But whatever. Did you get the Lien we sent you? Are there any bullies for you to worry about? Have you made any new friends?"

"Ok, ok, calm down mom. First, I do have the Lien you sent, but I do already have some on me. I did the odd jobs so you wouldn't have to send Lien periodically. You two need it more than I do. Second, I can take care of any bullies coming my way. Third, my team and I have made friends with three other teams: CFVY, JNPR, and RWBY. Mr. Schnee's daughter, Weiss, is part of team RWBY."

Selmon was surprised by this. "Hmmm…"

"What?" Abaddon asked.

Selmon smirked. "Well, I thought that maybe if you make a good impression and, possible, date her, and Mr. Schnee likes you, then I could get a raise!"

"Dad!" Abaddon whined.

"Oh, quit it Selmon. You don't even work for Schnee," Xahnara said, smacking her husband on his shoulder. "Besides, I don't think she would be his type, if she's anything like her father."

"Yeah, I'm just trying to get through my classes for now," Abaddon laughed.

"Alright, alright, I'm sure your friends are probably waiting for you to get off your scroll. Talk to you later son." Abaddon's father waved in the screen.

"Also, be careful not to hurt anyone too bad, do your best in class, have fun, and no unnecessary stunts with Jurano alright," his mother added. "We both love you."

"Love you guys too. See ya later." Abaddon shut off his scroll. He continued to look at the sunset, feeling better from having talked to his family. Although, he would sometimes think of the past, of the reason his parents live with his grandfather in Atlas in the first place. From the looks of it, night would soon fall upon the city and he was sure that he should probably go ahead and find the girls.

"Hey Fido, you done talking to your folks?" said a familiar voice. Abaddon turned around to see Yang standing a few feet behind him, hands on her hips.

Abaddon smiled. "Yeah. How'd you find me anyway?"

"Well I used my keen intellect and tracking skills. Plus, while I was looking I ran into team JNPR, who saw you come up here," she joked as she sat down next to Abaddon. "Kathleen was worried so I volunteered to check up on you."

"You found me, so now what?" he asked. He knew she would probably get bored looking at the view.

"We could go have fun, do something that doesn't involve sitting here or trying on clothes all day," she suggested. "Oh! How about we go to a club? That could be fun."

Abaddon laughed. "You sure Yang? Of the two of us, I'm the closest to 21. And I've only known you for almost a week, but I know you're a wild card. I can't imagine what you would do if you were drunk."

"No worries, I can control myself. I've only gone too far once and learned from that mistake. Plus, a friend of mine owns the club. I'm sure he wouldn't mind, "she said smiling.

Abaddon didn't really know what to make of what Yang said, but he shrugged and decided to go along with it. "Alright then, lead the way."


	6. Chapter 6

_Ch. 6_

"Here we are," said Yang as she and Abaddon walked up to a pair of large black doors.

The stars were somewhat visible as it was now early into the night. Since Yang didn't have her motorcycle, Bumblebee, with her, she and Abaddon took a cab. Now they were in a dark and gloomy part of town. From the looks of it, Abaddon guessed that very few people lived here.

As they neared the entrance of the club, they could hear music playing from within. Yang pushed the doors open as they ventured in. The corridors were dimly lit, but Abaddon could see perfectly thanks to his night vision. As they walked, he caught sight of two men standing in front of another pair of black doors. They wore black suits, hats, shoes, and had black hair with red ties and sunglasses.

When they caught sight of the duo, the two men seemed to panic and ran behind the doors.

"Close the door-she's coming!" he heard them say.

"More friends of yours?" Abaddon asked Yang.

Yang chuckled at him. "Sure, you could say that."

When they made it to the doors, Yang pulled one arm back. The yellow bracelet on her wrist expanded into a gauntlet that seemed to house a circlet of what looked like shotgun shells. Then she punched the doors, the force of her punch and the explosive blast from her gauntlets, Ember Celica, causing them to blow right open.

Yang walked in through the smoke. "Guess who's back!" she said with a smile and playful pose. Although, eight guns were abruptly pointed in her face. She wasn't fazed at all, but when the music track began screwing up Yang cast a glare at the bear headed DJ. Frightened by her gaze, the DJ took the needle off the record and proceeded to hide under the table.

Abaddon entered through the thin smoke from behind Yang. "That's one way to make an entrance," he said. He then saw the multitude of guns pointed at her. "Heh, I've been in this situation before. What'd you do Yang?"

Yang just kept her pose and grinned at him in response.

"Stop, stop! Nobody shoot." Through the crowd of armed men came a very tall man with grey eyes, short black hair, and a black beard and mustache. He was wearing a white dress shirt under a black vest, red tie, black gloves, and black dress pants. "Blondie, you're here! Why?"

"Just showing a new friend around town, thought this would be a good place to have some fun and have a few drinks," she said, pointing a thumb at Abaddon. "Abaddon, this huge fella is Junior. He's the friend I was talking about."

"Abaddon Rizer, nice to meet you." Abaddon held out his hand for Junior, who hesitated before taking the handshake.

"Junior Xiong. Are you really here for a drink? Last time a certain someone came in here, they nearly destroyed my club," he said glaring at Yang. Yang merely shrugged in response.

"It was Yang's idea to come here. I have no intention of destroying your club. And don't worry about Goldilocks, I'll make sure she behaves," Abaddon assured him. Several of the henchman gave him strange looks as if he had gone insane. Yang lightly punched him in the shoulder.

Junior had a look of interest on his face after hearing that. "Alright kid. That girl packs a mean punch, but if you're saying that you can keep her on a leash then you must be one tough shit. Come on, the bar's over here."

As Abaddon and Yang followed Junior, his henchmen parted to let them through. They all shared looks of caution as Abaddon and Yang passed, but kept their guns down like Junior told them to and soon dispersed to do other things. As the duo followed Junior, Abaddon got a good view of the club's interior. It was a large black room with an interchanging red and white color scheme coming from the overhead lights. Six glass pillars and small trees lined the white glass tile dance floor. The DJ had started the music again and the attendees who were already in the club were dancing just as they had been before. As they danced, what looked like red petals began falling from the ceiling, probably to add more color and style to the place. The many lights on the ceiling were attached to a circular platform that continually rotated at a fast pace.

Junior led his new guests to the other side of the room where the bar was situated. Abaddon and Yang sat on two bar stools while Junior went behind the bar. Alongside him were two woman who looked like twins, as they both had the same long black hair, facial structure, and pale green eyes albeit with different colored makeup and outfits. One of them had cyan makeup and wore a white, strapless dress in cyan lining, a white flower hairpin, white gloves, cyan wings on her back, and white heels. Her twin sister, on the other hand, had red makeup and wore a red strapless in black lining, black fur on her shoulders, red gloves, a black bow tied around her waist, and long red stiletto heel boots.

"Fix these two some drinks would ya," Junior told the twins before he exited the bar. "I'll be right back."

The twins didn't complain and walked towards Yang and Abaddon with looks of disinterest on their faces, especially towards Yang. Abaddon thought that the henchmen at the bar would be serving them, but he guessed that Junior specifically ordered these two to do it since he and Yang were "special."

"What would you like?" asked the twins.

"I'll haaaavvee, a small glass of wine please," Yang said.

"And I'll have a ginger ale," Abaddon said.

The twins nodded and began going through the shelves that were stationed behind the bar. The shelves spanned the length of the bar itself and carried a large number of drinks, many probably from the other kingdoms. The twin in white grabbed a red bottle that was filled with a bubbly liquid and filled a wine glass with its contents. She then gave the glass to Abaddon.

"Thank you," Abaddon said. The twin huffed in response.

"Aren't you gonna ask her name, ya' know, for a proper thank you? Like a gentleman would?" Yang asked smirking as the other twin set her glass in front of her.

Abaddon chuckled. He knew Yang was trying to stir up shit, like Junior said she supposedly did last time she was here.

"I don't know Yang. From the looks on their faces, these girls probably don't feel like talking, so I don't think I should bother them much," Abaddon responded. He gulped down his entire glass in one go and managed to suppress a burp.

"There's no harm in trying," Yang said. She took a quick sip from her wine.

The girl in front of him crossed her arms. "Ha! As if I'd tell you my name. We're just staying here until Junior gets back, but he never said we had to talk to you."

"But you just talked to me right now," he said.

"Whatever," she said. "I can't stay here any longer. Let's go sister." The twins then left the bar and walked off. A few minutes later, Junior reappeared.

"Where'd the Malachite twins go?" he asked.

"Oh they left after Fido here tried to get their names," Yang told him.

"I told those two idiots to stay here," Junior said in a frustrated tone.

"No harm done Junior. They probably had better things to do. I can tell they must have high standards," Abaddon surmised.

Junior nodded. "That is true. A few of my men have tried to sweet talk them, but they never prevail. The one in white is named Melanie and her sister is Militia. If you really want to get to know them, then you'd have to earn their respect."

"Noted," Yang said before grabbing Abaddon's arm. "Come on wolf boy, let's dance!"

Yang pulled Abaddon into the crowded dance floor. "Follow my lead," she told him. She then began dancing, moving her body in ways Abaddon had only seen few experts perform. He tried to keep up with her fluid movements, but lacked the expertise to do so. As Abaddon struggled, Yang laughed at his efforts. After almost half an hour on the dance floor, the duo went back to their seats at the bar.

"Haha, who taught you how to dance?" Yang asked.

"Jurano did, but I'm not a very flexible dancer and it's been a while," Abaddon replied.

"Well, you just need some practice. Maybe one day you'll be worth a personal dance from yours truly," she joked.

"Yeah sure, I'll look forward to that day," Abaddon replied sarcastically.

As Yang was drinking the last of her wine, the doors of the club opened again. This time, ten individuals wearing black and white hooded uniforms with grey masks entered the room. The music still played and the attendees kept dancing, but all the henchmen in the room seemed to be on alert.

"Whoa, what's with them?" Yang asked, noticing that some of these guys carried swords and guns.

"The White Fang," Abaddon growled. "What're they doing in the city!?"

The group of White Fang walked around the dance floor and came to the bar, specifically towards Junior. Junior stood up with his arms crossed, looking like he was ready to face them head on, but Abaddon could sense how nervous he was. He knew that any wrong move with the White Fang could make things turn ugly.

At the front of the group was a tall, bulky fellow. He was a tiger faunus, judging by his striped orange and black tail, carrying a pair of axes on his back. He walked up to the bar on Yang's left, right in front of Junior.

"What the hell do you want now Sigmund? I told you I have no idea where this crystal you're looking for is," Junior told them.

"Yes you did, but our contacts around the city always point straight back to you," Sigmund said.

"So what? I said I don't know. I haven't heard a damn thing about it, so why don't you just leave before things get ugly," Junior said. His men kept their guns at the ready while the twins stood nearby, ready to strike if necessary.

"Hehe, you know what? I get tired of humans with their lies and feeble threats. I think I'll show you what happens when you try to pull one over the White Fang." Sigmund grabbed his axes and struck at Junior, smashing a small portion of the bar in front of him. Junior was thrown back into the shelves by the force of the attack.

"Clear the room," Sigmund ordered one of his cohorts. The White Fang fighter next to him nodded, then aimed his gun and fired warning shots into the air. This alerted all the attendees to the situation and they quickly fled the club through the front doors.

"Aww come on. I just had this bar fixed," Junior whined as he stood back up.

"Don't worry. When I'm done, you won't be around to fix this place again." The White Fang Colonel lunged and slashed at Junior, only for his axes to collide with Abaddon's left gauntlet shield.

"Where'd you come from?" Sigmund asked in surprise.

Abaddon responded by pushing him away, over the group of fighters and onto the dance floor. The White Fang fighters then charged towards Abaddon, but Yang jumped in front of Abaddon and sent several blasts from her Ember Celica into the crowd. The blasts knocked several of them back towards Sigmund, while only two were knocked to the ground.

"Trying to start the fun without me?" Yang asked.

"Not really," Abaddon replied. He gazed towards Junior, who was carrying a grey and red rocket launcher in his hands. "Tell your men to stand down Junior. They'll just get in the way. Yang and I will take care of this."

Junior nodded. "Stay back! Don't shoot, don't do anything!" At the sound of his voice Junior's henchmen put their weapons down. They stood against the walls of the room in order to stay out of the fight.

"The floor's all yours," Junior told him.

Abaddon nodded. "You and the twins are free to help if you'd like, but I doubt you'd like what you'll see."

"And what exactly do you mean by that?" Melanie asked.

Before Abaddon could answer, one of the White Fang fighters who was on the ground charged at him from behind. The boy quickly withdrew one of the shorts swords from his right gauntlet and back stabbed the fighter through his chest. The fighter began to spit up blood for a few seconds before drawing his final breath. Abaddon pulled his sword out as the limp body fell to the floor.

"Whoa," Yang said in surprise. Junior held his mouth slightly agape while the twins looked away from the dead body.

"Don't worry, I'll clean it up," Abaddon said before dashing at the other fighters. Another White Fang stood in his way, brandishing a silver sword. Abaddon easily dodged the fighter's horizontal sword, then quickly slashed him across the chest. The fighter fell to ground as his blood began to stain his chest and then the floor. Abaddon didn't hesitate to look at what he'd done, and continued his advance.

Yang stood near the Malachite twins and Junior, astonished by Abaddon's murderous behavior. She had yet to see this side of him.

" _Maybe this is what he meant when he told Blake about going too far,"_ she thought. She wanted to help him, but she didn't know how he would react. Although, she wasn't about to back down now.

"Screw this, I'm going in!" Yang yelled as she rushed towards the dance floor.

Abaddon had already cut down the other seven White Fang fighters. He now stood in front of Sigmund and his last two lackeys, but they proved to be more than what they appeared to be. Nevertheless, Abaddon liked the challenge.

"Traitor! How could you!?" Sigmund screamed. He was gripping his axes in fury, seeing this mutt cut down his own kind.

"I thought I kicked you assholes out Vale," Abaddon said in a serious tone. The sclera of his left eye was completely black and the darkness was beginning to spread to his right.

"You guys give the rest of us faunus a bad name, and I grow sick of it," Abaddon growled at them. He charged at the two fighters guarding Sigmund. They both carried curved swords and blocked his attack, but he pushed them both down with his sheer strength. Before Abaddon could go for Sigmund, however, two explosive blasts hit the White Fang from the right which made him stagger.

"Let me take a crack at the big guy," Yang told him as she rushed towards Sigmund. The faunus gripped his axes and lunged at Yang, but she dodged left before the twin axes hit the floor where she had been. She ducked under the swing of his left axe and gave him a dazing punch to the face. Yang continued with a right jab to the Colonel's chest, dodged a diagonal swipe from one of his axes. She then bombarded him with a quick four hit combo that ended with a heavy uppercut. Sigmund landed on his back unconscious.

"Bad kitty," Yang said. She dusted herself off and turned to see how her friend was doing.

Abaddon had sheathed his swords as he dodged the attacks from Sigmund's last two subordinates. He smiled, much to their frustration, as he was clearly toying with them. The duo tried picking up the pace, but to no avail as they still couldn't touch Abaddon.

"Rarrrgh! Stay still!" one of them growled.

Abaddon laughed a bit at their efforts. He grabbed the blade of both their swords with his bare hands, as his semblance had increased his durability to the point that they couldn't cut him. Abaddon then kicked the one on his right in the chest, which caused him to clutch his stomach. The boy grabbed the second fighter by the wrist and threw him into the bar. Abaddon had used enough force to hurt his opponent, but not enough to damage the bar itself.

The White Fang fighter's mask had come off, revealing a girl with brunette hair and rabbit ears. She shook her head, but it didn't help to take away the blurriness in her vision. As she looked up from her position on the floor, her brown eyes gazed at Abaddon's form.

As Abaddon was walking towards her, he felt Yang's hand grab his right shoulder. He looked at her and saw a look of concern on her face.

"Abaddon, please…don't. I don't know what you have against the White Fang, but you don't need to kill them," she said.

"Not all of them," he said, shrugging her off. He walked up to the rabbit faunus and knelt down so he was eye level with her. "My name is Abaddon, and unlike the others, I've noticed that you and your partner here seem like you don't wish to fight. Why is that?"

The girl didn't know what to say to him. Not only was he strong, but the darkness in his eyes scared her. "It's true that we don't, but we have little choice. I…I was taken from my home a few years back and told that if I did what Sigmund wanted, then my sister would be safe and I could see her again," she stuttered.

Abaddon stared at the girl for a moment before the sclera in his eyes turned white once more. "A few years is a long time. Seems to me like they lied to keep you in line. Maybe I can help," he said as he stood up and held out a hand towards her. The rabbit faunus hesitated at first, but took Abaddon's hand as he helped her to her feet.

Yang stood next to Abaddon with her arms crossed. "Making promises huh Fido?" she chuckled, but they all turned when a loud moan came from the other White Fang who was on the ground. He slowly got to his feet and looked at them. His teeth gritted together when he saw the rabbit faunus with her mask off.

"Remora, why did you take off your mask? We're supposed keep our faces hidden! Get away from them!" Remora's partner exclaimed. He reached for his sword, but remembered that he dropped it after he collapsed. Looking around, he found it laying near Yang's feet.

"Klyde, wait. I think they can help us," Remora said. She was still scared of him, but ever since being forced to join the White Fang she never got any closer to her goal. At this rate, she wanted all the help she could get.

"This guy just killed the other faunus like they were child's play. How can we trust him?!" Klyde screamed. He still wasn't convinced by the offer and held his fists up in a defensive position.

"It's been years since we were forced to join the White Fang. They always said that we'll see our family again, but we've never been closer to our goal. Please Klyde," Remora responded.

Letting those words soak in, Klyde lowered his guard. He slowly took off his mask to show his dark blue eyes, short cream colored hair, small ram horns, and dark skin. He walked up to Remora and held her hands in his. "Alright, if you can go along with this, then so will I," he told her. Remora responded with a kiss on Klyde's cheek.

Abaddon turned to Yang, who was giving him a weird look. "No Yang," he simply said.

"Oh come on, we're in the spur of the moment here," she joked.

"This is their small moment, not ours," Abaddon replied.

Yang laughed, but then froze for a second after she looked back towards Klyde and Remora. Abaddon followed her gaze and saw Sigmund standing behind the couple with both his axes raised to attack. Abaddon quickly grabbed both Remora and Klyde. He made them duck down as Yang fired multiple blasts that bombarded Sigmund's chest, causing him fall back. Abaddon let go of the two faunus and jumped on Sigmund as the latter was trying to regain his balance. He put the big guy in a tight headlock and pulled him away from the others.

"Let me go you traitorous shit! I'll kill both you and you're damn human bimbo!" Sigmund screamed as he struggled.

"Look away," Abaddon told the others.

They did as they were told and looked the opposite way.

"What're you going to do? Don't! Stop iiiiiittt!"

 _CRACK!_

Sigmund's lifeless form fell to the floor at Abaddon's feet. Abaddon walked away from the body and stood in front of Yang. She put a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"You ok?" she asked.

"Yeah. It's nothing. It doesn't really bother me," he said to her. Abaddon turned towards Remora. "Hey Remora, what's your sister's name? For all we know, she could be in Vale right now."

And much to Abaddon's surprise, she said, "My sister's name is Velvet, Velvet Scarlatina."


	7. Chapter 7

_Ch. 7_

"And that's the situation so far," Yang said as she finished explaining what happened earlier to Ozpin.

Yang, Abaddon, Klyde, and Remora had left Junior's bar almost an hour ago. After Abaddon killed the White Fang Colonel, Junior ordered his men to clean up the bodies. He thanked Abaddon, and reluctantly Yang, for their help and in return Abaddon asked Junior to let him know of any information he happens to find on the streets.

As they headed to Beacon, Remora and Klyde told them more about their history with the White Fang. Three years ago, during the White Fang's change in leadership, they began recruiting even more faunus to the cause. Some joined voluntarily while others were forced due to their useful skills. Remora and Klyde were coming home from a date when they were kidnapped. They were threatened that if they didn't comply, then Remora's family in Vacuo would be 'educated,' specifically Velvet. With no choice left to them, the coupled reluctantly agreed to the terms, and so for those three years the two were assigned to whatever Sigmund told them to do. Remora tried to keep track of her family's whereabouts, but was hindered by Sigmund's cruel behavior as he strictly forbid it and would punish Klyde since he would protect Remora from their leader's wrath. Their lives were basically in turmoil, that is, until now.

When asked about his family, Klyde said that his original family had abandoned him a long time ago, so he was left on his own. He somehow managed to get a job for a few years at a dust shop and one day met Remora. After a while they started dating and later on Remora managed to convince her parents to allow Klyde to live with them. The Scarlatina's were like family to him, so Klyde was obligated to protect them when the White Fang threatened them.

Abaddon knew that the other White Fang members would be looking for them after what happened, and if they were in the city then it would be too dangerous to rent a hotel, so he came up with a solution: convince Ozpin to let them stay at Beacon. Klyde thought it would be risky while Yang thought it wouldn't hurt to try.

Now the four of them stood in Ozpin's office in Beacon tower, hoping he would agree to their suggestion.

"Hmmm," hummed Ozpin as he closed his eyes to think. "I'd rather not attract trouble to my school. The year has practically just begun."

"But if they stay in the city, there's a chance they'll be found and probably forced back in. They could escape, but there's nothing worse than constantly being on the run," Abaddon explained.

"Yeah, plus no one knows were here. The other members never really paid attention to our appearances or knew our names. And Abaddon already killed the squad we were with," Remora added.

Abaddon and Yang face palmed while Klyde gave Remora a concerned look.

"What? Was I not supposed to say that?" Remora asked.

Ozpin sighed. "Well as long as you two are willing to learn to become a huntsmen and huntress, and as long as your presence in this school doesn't bring danger to the student body, I will accept you offer. There should be a vacant guest dorm near the first year quarters. Here's the keycards for the door. Later on you'll be given your own scrolls and uniforms," he said smiling as he gave them two blue keycards.

"Thank you sir," Remora said.

Klyde hugged Remora, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Finally, we can sleep in peace for once."

"Thanks Professor," Yang said.

"No need to thank me," Ozpin replied as he took a sip from his coffee mug, which mysteriously appeared in his hand.

"Alright," Yang yawned, "I'm ready to turn in. Let's go see your new room guys!"

"Wait," Ozpin said as the four of them were headed towards the elevator. "Mr. Rizer, could you stay for a minute?"

"Sure," Abaddon said and turned towards Yang. "You go on ahead with Remora and Klyde. I'll see you tomorrow."

"No probs Fido," Yang said as she walked into the elevator. Remora and Klyde waved at him before the elevator's doors closed and it went down the building.

"Okay, is this about what Remora said? About me killing the other White Fang fighters that were with them?" Abaddon asked.

Ozpin took another sip from his mug. "Yes. Mr. Rizer, I have always believed that the students who walk through the halls of this school were capable of many things as they go on their paths to become protectors of the people, fighting against the Grimm to make the world a better place. You are no exception, but I didn't think you would be capable of something like this."

Abaddon shrugged. "It's just something I've grown accustomed to."

"That's what worries me, my young friend," Ozpin replied.

"Don't worry, it's not like I'm gonna kill a student here. Or some random citizen on the street. I've only killed Grimm and White Fang with delusional and idiotic ideals," Abaddon explained.

"What do you mean by delusional?" Ozpin asked.

"Usually, all the White Fang say they fight for the justice of the faunus, to fight against the tyranny that is humanity. But all they want is that selfish desire to destroy the humans, make Remnant a paradise for faunus through extermination. 'The humans must pay!' 'We faunus are the victims!' 'Every human is our enemy!' That's all I hear them say. That's not a goal, that's a selfish, hate filled desire. So I killed them, so no more innocents could be hurt by their hands. Only on some occasions would I encounter a faunus or two who had a real purpose: to protect family, friends, loved ones. It's those individuals that I spare and try to convince them to find another path besides the one the White Fang has laid out for them." After having his say, Abaddon looked down. He was afraid he had said too much and hoped he didn't upset his headmaster.

Ozpin went up to him. "I see where you're coming from young man. It is a terrible path that the new White Fang has chosen, but when I said that it worries me, I meant about you. Having all this on your shoulders could hamper your ability to think and see clearly. After all, huntsmen are trained to kill Grimm, not people. And as for your friends, don't let this affect them the way it does you. I'm not sure they could handle having the blood of another on their hands as you have. You're not in trouble, but I do hope you take what I've said into thought," Ozpin told him.

"So you're not upset?" Abaddon asked.

"Not in the slightest. Just concerned for the wellbeing of my students," said Ozpin as he smiled. "Now go on to bed. I'm sure you're ready to retire like everyone else."

"Sure am," Abaddon yawned. "Thanks for the advice Professor Ozpin. I appreciate it."

"Your welcome. Goodnight Mr. Rizer," Ozpin replied.

Abaddon walked into the elevator, pressed a button, and the doors closed as the elevator traveled down to the bottom floor. And as he went down, Abaddon's thoughts shifted to his currently growling stomach. "Damn, I wish I had a bone with me right now."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Sir, it's been three weeks and we still have yet to hear from Colonel Sigmund's squad. We've searched Vale several times over and there is absolutely no sign of them at all," said a fox eared White Fang fighter.

He was in a dark room that had a large metal square table in the middle with a detailed map of Remnant. The room had no lights, but the light coming from the three barely open windows that spanned three of the room's walls helped to see. In a gray chair next to the table sat the White Fang Lieutenant Corvus. He was a white tan skinned man with short black hair. He wore the usual White Fang garb, but with metal guards on his forearms and his unique top had propped collar. Unlike the others his mask covered his entire face while also having red eyes with thin red streaks streaming to the bottom of the mask. He also bore several tattoos on his left arm.

"I was hoping to get all our brethren back in one piece. They were a dispensable group, not really important to our operation. Although, no one gave a damn about Sigmund anyway. Fucking piece of shit," Corvus said.

Corvus stood up from his slouched position. "Well, we found what we we're looking for without any inside info, but the Commander is getting impatient. We need to dig up that Longinus piece before any huntsmen know were here, so tell the others to pick up the pace down there."

The White Fang fighter nodded before exiting the room and closing the door behind him. Corvus looked back at the map of Remnant. It was a detailed blue print of every continent, with black flags marking Vacuo, Vale, and Mistral.

"What the hell is so damn important about these fragments?"

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

It had been three weeks since Remora and Klyde moved in to Beacon Academy. Teams RWBY, JNPR, and KAJE helped them to get settled into the campus and attend their regular classes. They had also been given uniforms and money from the school to buy regular clothes. It was harder for Klyde to adjust as he had never been to a combat school for more than a few months, but thanks to his girlfriend's support he managed anyway. Although, Remora did have a problem of her own.

"What the hell do you mean you're afraid to go talk to her?" Jurano said.

Teams KAJE and RWBY were hanging out in the school's library. Since it was the weekend, everyone wore their usual attire. Remora had gone shopping with Klyde the other day. She wore a short sleeved cream colored mini dress with grey stockings and brown shoes while Klyde wore a dark green t shirt with dark brown cargos and brown shoes.

Everyone had a different activity to be occupied with: Abaddon was laying back in his chair with a book on his face to pretend that he was sleeping, Kathleen was laying on his shoulder actually asleep, Weiss was reading a rather large textbook, Blake was silently reading one of her usual novels, and Ruby was playing the Remnant board game with Yang and Emma. Jurano was talking to Remora about meeting Velvet, but for the last few weeks she didn't say a word to her younger sister. She even managed to somehow avoid her entirely.

"It's just that it's been three years. I don't know what to say to her. For all I know she could've assumed that we just ran off and resented us for it," Remora replied.

"What the fuck," said Abaddon as he sat up, dropping the book from off his face. "That makes no sense to me."

"I know right." Jurano sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. "Velvet talks about you too. She remembers how close you two were before you were kidnapped. For an entire year, before she went to bed she would look up at the stars and wish for your safe return."

"Wow," Remora replied. "I did the same thing for a year, hoping that she was safe and that I could return home soon."

"Why didn't you just quit the White Fang to begin with? I'm sure they were bluffing about hurting your family," Kathleen said as she woke up from the commotion. She scooted her chair closer to Abaddon and wrapped her arms around his left arm before falling asleep again.

"Because-," Klyde started.

"They weren't really bluffing," Abaddon interrupted. "When you quit or try to leave to another kingdom to get away, they send someone to kill you. I doubt they would've kept tabs on your family, but they wouldn't hesitate to take your lives if you two had tried to escape in the first place."

"Damn, that's hardcore," Yang chimed in.

While she wasn't looking, Emma moved one of the pieces on their game board. When Yang looked back, she noticed the piece and went wide eyed.

"We win!" Ruby cheered.

"In your face!" Emma added, then high fived Ruby.

"No fair, it was two against one!" Yang pointed, her eyes turning red.

"Then maybe you could ask Weiss or Blake to join you," said Ruby.

"Not interested," Weiss and Blake replied simultaneously.

Jurano went back to talking to Remora. "Well, if you don't muster the courage to talk to her now, you could end up regretting it in the future," Jurano told her.

"Hey, we can't rush this. But maybe she just needs a little push. Ya'know, a little support from friends," Klyde said. "Would you mind if we came with you?"

"No. I would actually prefer it," Remora said and kissed Klyde on the cheek.

"Well, shouldn't we go then? It's now or never," Blake added, looking up from her book.

"I'm surprised you were even listening," said Yang.

"I was, but I usually don't look like I am," said Blake to her partner.

"Come on, I'll lead the way," Jurano said.

As Jurano stood up and started walking, Remora, Klyde, Blake, Yang, and Emma followed suit. Ruby went over to Weiss, who had been preoccupied with her library book the entire time.

"Come on Weiss, we're leaving," Ruby said to her partner.

"Wait, I still need to study," Weiss whined.

Ruby began to pull on Weiss' arm until she managed to actually pull her out of her seat. Weiss tried to pry herself from Ruby's grip, but the little girl's sudden burst of strength kept the heiress from escaping.

"This is a sisterly crisis Weiss!" Ruby grunted.

"That's my textbook you dolt. I need it!" Weiss continued to whine.

Abaddon got up and closed the book. "Don't worry Weiss, I'll bring it to you."

"Thanks!" she said before Ruby pulled her out of sight.

Abaddon smiled, then turned towards Kathleen, who was slowly getting up from her seat. She wiped the grogginess from her eyes.

"Where'd everyone go?" She asked.

"They're going to team CFVY's dorm to help Remora talk to Velvet," Abaddon replied.

"Oh, that sounds great," Kathleen replied. She started walking out of the library, then noticed that Abaddon was still standing next to the table. "You coming?"

"I'll be there in a few. Got some things to take care of. You go on ahead," he told her.

"Alright, don't be too long," she said smiling before walking out of sight.

Abaddon was smiling until Kathleen left, then his expression turned serious. He leaned against the table, crossed his arms, and closed his eyes.

"You can come out now. I knew you were there," he called out.

From behind one of the stocked bookcases came the sound of clicking heels. The appeared a woman with fair skin, bright amber eyes, long black hair that was swept to the left and wearing an elegant red, off-the shoulder's minidress with yellow designs, black shorts, a black choker, an anklet on her right leg, and black glass heels. She walked over and sat on the table next to Abaddon.

"Well, you certainly haven't lost your touch," the woman said in a rather charming tone.

"Cinder. What are you doing here?" Abaddon asked in a serious tone.

"I'm just attending Beacon, same as you are sweetie," she said, but when she turned to look at him his mood didn't change. "Oh don't give me that look."

Cinder gently rubbed his cheek with her hand. The sensation was soothing to Abaddon, but it would take more than that to lower his guard. He grabbed her hand and pulled it away from his face.

"The fact that you're here proves that you still haven't let go," he said to her. "I left for a reason, you know that."

"Hmph, well maybe I wasn't ready to say goodbye. And I've already been enrolled, so there's no going back now," Cinder replied.

Cinder positioned herself to face him, trying to lean against his body. Abaddon saw this coming and merely held her back by grabbing and holding both her wrists. Cinder looked up at him with a pouting face, but Abaddon still looked indifferent.

"Do you even have a team?" he asked her.

"Why yes I do." Cinder looked to the aisle on their right. "In fact, here come my teammates now."

Around the nearest bookshelf came two students: A boy with short grey hair, grey eyes, wearing a grey and black jacket, black fingerless gloves, black pants, and shoes. The other student was a dark skinned girl with dark red eyes, light mint-green short cut hair, wearing a white top, cropped green underskirt, white pants, brown chaps, and heels.

"Hey Cin, we got the book you needed-."

Both of them stopped when they saw the position Abaddon and Cinder were in.

"Uhh, are we interrupting anything?" the boy coughed with a smug smile on his face.

The girl next to him held a look of suspicion and distrust.

"What the hell is this?" Emerald asked.

"It's nothing, just catching up with an old acquaintance," Cinder replied.

Cinder then escaped Abaddon's grip, turned around, and leaned back against his torso. Abaddon blushed a little and growled at her, the edge of his left eye turning slightly black.

"Whatever, you know you like it when I'm close to you," she told him with a smile as Abaddon continued to glare down at the brunette laying against him, but soon gave up resisting and decided to just ignore it. He gazed at the two students who were staring at him.

"These are your teammates?" he asked.

"Yes. The girl's name is Emerald, and the boy's name is Mercury." Cinder stroked Abaddon's chin, which cause him to growl again. "Guys, this is Abaddon. The old 'friend' that I told you about a while ago."

"The White Fang killer?" Emerald plainly asked.

"You should have kept you lips shut Cinder," Abaddon angrily whispered in Cinder's ear.

"Well I had to tell them something sweetie. What are you gonna do? Sue me?" she whispered back.

"Psssh, I can do worse. By the way, there's only three of you. Where's the fourth?" Abaddon asked.

"Oh right, that's the special surprise I had for you," Cinder said as she stood up.

She casually walked over to Mercury and pulled someone from behind him. It was a rather short little girl with hair that was brown on the right and pink on the left, eyes that were the same colors but switched sides, wearing a white jacket, multiple necklaces, a black corset, brown pants, and gray high heeled boots. The little girl shyly waved at Abaddon.

"Neo!" Abaddon yelled.

He rushed over and picked up the little girl as if she was a toddler. Neo laughed as Abaddon pulled her into a tight hug, which she gladly returned.

"It's good to see you too Abby," she said.

"Are you still the quiet and shy one?" Abaddon asked.

"She's barely talked at all since we've been here. Makes it difficult as hell to communicate with her," said Mercury.

"Oh really?" said Abaddon.

He started tickling Neo, which caused her to laugh uncontrollably. She tried to pull his hands away, but she was too weak. After he managed to get her on the floor, he stopped and stood up.

"Well guys, I gotta go see to my friends. Mercury, Emerald, nice meeting you two," said Abaddon.

"Likewise dude," Mercury replied.

He and Abaddon shook hands, but when Abaddon tried to get a handshake from Emerald, she huffed and walked away. Abaddon looked towards Mercury with a worried expression.

"Don't worry, she does that to all the people she doesn't trust. She's actually pretty cool once you get to know her," Mercury said.

"Noted. Neo, we'll catch up later alright." Abaddon nodded towards the little girl, who did the same in response.

Then he went up to Cinder. "Look, we'll have to talk later, about 'this'," Abaddon pointed to her and him. "But for now, I just want you to know that I'm glad you and Neo are safe ok. I was upset back then, but also worried."

Cinder blushed. "Oh my, I was beginning to think you'd turned cold on me."

She tried to get close to him, but he grabbed her shoulders to keep her a good distance from him.

"I'll talk to you later Cinder," Abaddon said, then walked away from them and out of the library.


	8. Chapter 8

_Ch. 8_

Velvet stood in silent shock in one of the school's gardens. One minute she was picking flowers with Yatsuhashi, now she was looking at what looked like her missing older sister, Remora. She was completely frozen, speechless, and unable to comprehend the existence of the girl that stood before her.

"Hello Velvet," Remora managed to utter before she was pulled into a very tight hug by her younger sister, which she returned.

Velvet buried her face into Remora's chest, with no intention of letting go. She looked up at Remora, tears in her eyes.

"Remora! It's really you!" Velvet cried. "I had been wishing for your return for so long."

"So have I sister," Remora replied, also teary eyed.

"What happened to you? Why did you and Klyde disappear?" Velvet asked.

"It wasn't their fault Vel. They were captured by the White Fang," Jurano said.

Velvet gasped. "But couldn't you have escaped?" she asked them.

Klyde shook his head. "They threatened to hurt you and your parents. This turned out to be a bluff, but they would've had us killed if we did," he told her.

Velvet hugged her sister again, this time pulling Klyde into the fray. She continued to silently cry. Klyde just wrapped his arms around both sisters.

He sighed. "At least we're all together now."

The rest of team CFVY along with RWBY and KAJE happily smiled as they witnessed the family reunion. Yang grabbed Ruby in a bear hug, thinking of how bad she would feel if she were separated from her sister.

"Yang! Too tight! Too tight!" Ruby gasped.

Yang immediately let go of her. "Whoops, sorry Rubes," she apologized.

After several minutes of embracing, Velvet broke off from Klyde and Remora.

"But wait, if you would've been killed if you left, how did you get here?" Velvet asked them.

"Your friends Abaddon and Yang helped us. They freed us from the White Fang, then brought us here to ask the headmaster for a dorm to keep us safe," Klyde answered.

Velvet gazed in Yang's direction, who was giving Velvet a thumbs up. And as if on cue, Abaddon walked into the garden, carrying a large bone in his mouth. He had dropped off Weiss' textbook in front of the RWBY dorm and visited the CFVY dorm. When he found it vacant, he merely guessed that they would be in the school garden and decided to stop by the cafeteria to grab a steak on the way there.

"Hmmm, I wonder if he'll play fetch," Yang wondered aloud, which caused the others to laugh.

"Alright, how much did I miss?" Abaddon asked.

Velvet ran over to Yang first and gave her a hug, who returned it in kind. Then Velvet went over to Abaddon and hugged him as well. This caused him to almost drop his bone.

"Whoa, you almost made me drop my snack. You don't find a bone like this every day," he chuckled and returned Velvet's hug.

"Hey, now that your family's here, why don't you spend the rest of the day with them?" Abaddon suggested.

"I intend to," Velvet answered.

She walked over to Remora and grabbed her sister's arm, telling her that they were going to the city to catch up on lost time. Remora agreed and grabbed Klyde's hand as Velvet led them to the docks.

"Well, it's about time for my nap," Abaddon said as he headed inside.

"Same here," Jurano added.

Although, as he was about to head in, Velvet grabbed his hand and started pulling him towards the docks as well.

"Come on Jurano. I want you to come with us," she pleaded.

"Crap, I was just about to take a good ass nap. What do ya need me for?" Jurano asked as she continued to drag him.

"I don't wanna be the third wheel," Velvet giggled.

As everyone watched Velvet pull Jurano away, Coco strolled up next to Abaddon.

"Good job kid," she said as she smacked him on the ass.

This attracted Kathleen's attention, who immediately gave Coco a dirty look as she and the others walked inside.

"You know what this means?" she asked Abaddon once the rest of her team was out of earshot.

"What? That Jurano's gonna get less than what he bargained for?" Abaddon smiled.

"Maybe, but it also means that Yatsu has some competition," Coco said before going inside.

" _Hmmm, never thought Yatsuhashi could be the jealous type,"_ Abaddon thought. But he decided to shrug it off go inside.

Jurano spent the next two weeks with Velvet, Remora, and Klyde. After class, Emma was usually with Ruby, Kathleen would study, and Abaddon usually spent his time sleeping. It was on the next Monday evening, while team KAJE was in their dorm, that Jurano told them something surprising.

"She kissed you?!" Emma screamed.

"Yeah," Jurano said smiling, "she did it a few days ago."

"Miracles do happen," Kathleen joked as she picked at Abaddon's hair.

He was sitting on the floor, laying fast asleep against her legs.

"Shut up Kathleen. At least I'm not the one hiding my feelings," Jurano replied.

Kathleen turned away, her face blushing deep red. "What do you mean? I'm not hiding anything."

"Kathleen, we've known for years that you're in love with Abby," Emma interrupted. "Both of you are attracted to strong people. Also, when he left six years ago, you became a ghost. It wasn't until he returned that you really came back to your senses, but don't worry, he doesn't know about that. He doesn't even know how you feel, Abby's always been clueless when it comes to stuff like that," she explained.

"You should probably tell him sooner or later," Jurano added.

"I know. I'm just trying not to show obvious signs until I'm ready," Kathleen explained, then looked back at Jurano. "But let's go back to you and Velvet."

"Yeah, does this mean she's your lucky rabbit now?" Emma asked in excitement.

"Well, we were already kinda close. This just brought us closer. The reason she kissed me was because I punched the shit out of this dumbass named Russel. He was tugging on her ears to see if they were actually real," Jurano explained.

"Oh, a member of team CRDN. I've seen them in action before, bunch of idiots," Kathleen fumed.

"One of them tried to pull on my ears," Emma added.

"Those ears belong to me and me only." Abaddon had woken up from his sleep. Although, he didn't move from his positon as Kathleen's playing with his hair relaxed him.

"And who do 'these' ears belong to?" Kathleen asked, pulling on his wolf ears.

"Aah! Ok Kat, they're yours! They're yours! Damn!" Abaddon screamed.

Kathleen let go of his ears and stood up, stepping away from her bed.

"Well, I'm going to the gym. Anyone coming?" she asked.

"Nope," Jurano, "I have a study 'date' with Vel. Plus, I don't wanna get my ass kicked by you over and over again. Later guys."

Jurano walked out of the dorm and down the hallway.

"Uhh, I wish I could," Emma lied, "but I was gonna make some cookies with Ruby. Sooooo, bye." Emma quickly gave her brother a hug before running out the door.

Kathleen smiled at Abaddon, the last occupant besides her.

Abaddon stood up. "Well, it's just you and me Kat."

Abaddon put on his gauntlets while Kathleen sheathed her rifle swords on her back.

"I bet I can get at least five hits on you this time," he said with smirk.

"Pff, we'll see. Or you'll just get your ass handed to you," she replied.

They left their dorm, closing the door behind them and walked through campus. After a long stroll, they came up to a set of grey double doors. Abaddon opened the door for Kathleen, then went in himself. The inside of the gym was a massive domed circular area with white walls and two sets of grey bleachers facing each other, one on the left and the other on the right. The walls were decorated with flags that held the Vale insignia. In the middle of the gym was a flat octagonal combat area for training and a giant screen above each of the bleachers that displayed the combatant's aura levels. There were also three other open doorways connected to the gym: one for weapon storage and lockers, one containing a weight room, and the last had vending machines.

There was a match already occurring in the arena. Jaune was up against Cardin. And Kathleen could tell that they were nearing the end of the bout as Jaune was running low on aura.

Jaune looked up at one of the screens. His aura level was in the orange, another hit would send him into the red and he'd lose.

"Alright, I can do this," he said to himself, getting into his battle stance.

Cardin took his stance, his mace at the ready. Jaune charged him with his right sword hand held back and shield in front. Cardin dodged to the right, which was a mistake. Jaune faked his sword swing to get Cardin's attention, then hit him with a hard shield bash. Cardin was temporarily stunned, and that hit took down a good chunk of his aura.

" _Great, let's see if I can keep this up,"_ Jaune thought.

He held his shield up again and charged, but Cardin was ready. When Jaune tried to fake his attack once more, Cardin swung his mace and knocked Jaune's sword away. He then hit Jaune in his exposed side with his mace, knocking the blonde to the floor and sending his aura into the red. Jaune slowly got up off the floor and on his feet.

"Better luck next time Jauney boy," Cardin said as he walked over to the bleachers on the right side of the room where his team was.

Jaune collapsed his shield into it's sheathe form. He then went to pick up his sword and placed it into the sheathe on his hip. He turned to his teammates, who had strolled off the left bleachers and towards the arena to check on him.

"Sorry guys. I don't know if I'm cut out for this," he told them.

"Jaune, don't put yourself down like that," Pyrrha said as she placed a caring hand on his shoulder.

"She's right. Just a little more practice and you'll do fine," assured Ren.

"And maybe you'll even break his legs," Nora added loudly.

"Uhm, Nora. I don't think I wanna go that far," Jaune replied.

"Then can I do it for you?" said a familiar voice from his left.

Jaune turned to see Kathleen and Abaddon walking towards them.

"Hey guys," greeted Jaune.

"Hi!" Nora said while Ren only smiled and waved.

"Abaddon, Kathleen, how are you?" greeted Pyrrha.

"We're doing fine, thanks for asking," Kathleen replied with smile. "We came to train like we usually do."

"I heard several students were frightened by you two," Ren mused.

"Yeah, they tried to pick a fight with us and lost. Badly," Abaddon replied.

"Abaddon, you ready?" Kathleen asked.

Abaddon was about to answer, but then he looked at JNPR with an interested look on his face.

"Hold on Kat, I think I'll spar with one of team JNPR first, specifically Nora. I wanna see what that hammer of hers is made of," he said.

Nora jumped in excitement as she grab Magnhild and shifted it into its hammer form. Abaddon checked his shield gauntlets as he and Nora headed to the arena. Kathleen and the rest of team JNPR sat together on the bleachers to watch. Even team CRDN, who hadn't left the building, was paying attention. As the combatants entered the arena, the screens on the walls turned on to display Nora and Abaddon's faces along with their aura levels.

" _If I use my swords she'll surely break them. Looks like my fists and shields are the best options here,"_ he thought.

Nora and Abaddon assumed their battle positons. They waited for either one to strike. After a few seconds, Nora made the first move. She charged at him, swinging her hammer in an overhead arc. Abaddon rolled out of the way seconds before her hammer hit the ground. Abaddon regained his footing and charged at Nora. He managed to shield bash her left side, causing her to skid back a few feet. She swung her hammer from her left. Abaddon blocked the strike with his right shield gauntlet, but then Nora let loose one of her grenades. The explosive impact sent Abaddon flying to the other edge of the arena.

"Holy shit, she's got grenades in that thing?!" screamed Russel.

Abaddon stood back on his feet just in time to see Nora coming in with another crushing blow. He sidestepped the strike, then dashed and punched Nora in the stomach. She was thrown back from the blow, but quickly recovered. She began firing a few grenades. Abaddon dodged each one as he sprinted towards Nora. He jumped up and was ready to deliver a kick to Nora's head, but she was fast with her hammer. She swung Magnhild upwards, hitting Abaddon and sending him upwards towards the ceiling. Abaddon had reduced some of the damage by crossing his arms at the last second. He almost hit the high ceiling before he stopped and started going back down. As he was falling, Abaddon angled himself so he'd land on his feet. Nora stepped back as he landed on all fours with a loud boom. Abaddon stood back up, unfazed and smiling.

"Your hammer packs one hell of a punch," he said as he dusted himself off. "Shall we continue?"

Nora only smirked as she charged at Abaddon once again. They each continued to dodge and exchange blows, but Nora's strikes seemed to have a decreased effect on Abaddon. In the last few seconds of the fight, Abaddon dashed forward as Nora swung down with her hammer, but he went in too fast for her and hit Nora with a hard punch to the gut. Nora was sent flying as her aura dived into the red. She landed on her back, her hammer by her side. Abaddon went over and helped Nora to her feet. He picked up her hammer and handed to her.

"Thanks for the match Nora. That was fun, don'tchya think?" he asked her.

Nora replied by lowering her hammer and letting the tip lightly touch his forehead, "Boop."

"I'll take that as a yes," Abaddon laughed.

Abaddon and Nora joined their friends on the bleachers. Nora had collapsed Magnhild back into its launcher form and placed it on her back. She sat next to Ren while Abaddon stood near Kathleen.

"That was a great match guys," Pyrrha said.

"How'd I do Ren?" Nora asked him.

"You never cease to amaze me Nora," he replied, earning a bear hug from his energetic partner.

"You held back didn't you?" Kathleen asked Abaddon.

"Well, you're one of the only people that can make me go all out in the ring Kat," he replied, scratching the back of his head.

"Hey Abaddon, I'm curious about your semblance," Pyrrha said.

"Yeah, you shrugged off Nora's blows like they were nothing," Jaune added. "You even managed to catch Nora's hammer in your bare hand at one point!"

"Uhh, my semblance is a bit complicated. My parents call it 'Restless Guardian.' It allows me to have nearly unlimited stamina as long as I have aura, hence the restless part. And also my durability grows over time, to the point that I can't be cut by swords, penetrated by bullets, or hurt by attacks from Nora's hammer. As my defense increased, Nora's attacks became less effective, but she still brought me down to about half my aura," Abaddon explained.

"So are you bulletproof right now?" Jaune asked.

Nora started poking Abaddon's chest for good measure.

"Sadly no," Kathleen answered. "His semblance only activates in battle. We don't know the limit, as in how durable he can become, but I know that once a battle ends all that 'armor' goes away. He has to recollect his durability again in the next fight. He's considerably strong as well but that doesn't stop me from beating him every time."

"Yeah, I would say that Kathleen's the strongest fighter on my team. She's absolutely amazing," Abaddon added.

"Oh shush you," Kathleen said blushing.

"Hey, it's my opinion. Maybe you should spar with Pyrrha, I've heard she's plenty strong," Abaddon said.

"Sure. What do you say Pyrrha?" Kathleen asked.

"I don't mind. I'd actually be delighted to see what you can do," Pyrrha replied.

"Be careful out there Pyrrha," Jaune said.

Kathleen and Pyrrha both walked to the arena and faced each other on opposite sides. Pyrrha brought out her short sword, Milo, and her shield, Akouo. Kathleen unsheathed her twin rifle swords, Mortuus Concordiae. The screens above now showed their pictures and aura levels.

Nora stood with his hands raised. "Let the battle begin!"

"Damn, my body hurts," Abaddon whined as he lay on his bed.

He ate another of the cookies that Emma and Ruby made and tried to go back to sleep. Half an hour ago, he and Kathleen had just gotten back to their dorm from the gym. After an exciting match, Pyrrha and Kathleen settled at a draw. Then teams JNPR and CRDN left, leaving Abaddon and Kathleen to train by themselves. And as usual Kathleen beat him, five to zero. She always outmatched him, no matter how hard he tried.

"You're the one who asked me not to hold back," Kathleen chuckled.

She sat on his bed next to him as he lay down in his pajamas. She felt bad for hurting him, but he always said that he would beat her someday, somehow. That's one of the things she liked about him: his persistence. He kept going no matter what, forever determined. Kathleen gently stroked Abaddon's head as he fell asleep. She looked around at the others.

Emma was sitting on her bed in her PJs, drawing in her sketch pad. Jurano was also in his PJs: a short sleeve green shirt with red shorts. He was looking up at the ceiling while listening to music from his scroll.

"I guess I'd better go wash up as well," Kathleen said.

She walked into the bathroom and slowly took off her clothes for she started to feel tired as well. She turned on the shower and stepped under the hot water. It was so soothing to her that she had to fight the urge to sleep right there with the shower head raining down on her. After she was done washing up, she dried herself off and put on her under wear along with a blue sleeveless top and purple shorts. She picked up her clothes and deposited them in the hamper near the bathroom door.

She exited the bathroom and was about to go to sleep when there was a knock on the room door. She walked over and opened it to see Cinder with a mild smile on her face.

"Hello, my name's Cinder Fall. I was wondering if Abaddon was here?" she asked.

"He is, but he's already asleep. I don't know if he'll even-," Kathleen stopped mid-sentence when a hand grabbed her shoulder. She turned her head to look at Abaddon, who had overhead them and got out of bed to see what was going on. Although, Kathleen could tell that he really wanted to go back to sleep. Abaddon pulled Kathleen behind him as he faced Cinder.

"Hey Cinder. What do you need?" Abaddon asked.

"Hey, I was wondering if you could come to my dorm and we could talk for a bit. Just some things I wanted to discuss with you," Cinder said as she placed a gentle hand on his cheek. Her touch was warm on his skin.

"Maybe, but I'm too beat right now to do anything. Maybe some other time," he told her.

"Oh, come on. You could just sleep in my bed," she said smoothly, trying to inch closer to him.

Abaddon merely pushed her back a few inches with his finger, knowing that she was trying to manipulate him. He smiled at her attempt.

"Still not working Cin. We'll talk later, for now goodnight. And tell the others I said hello." Abaddon then closed the door on Cinder and went back into his bed.

"Looks like our leader's got a woman on the side," Jurano said. He had seen what was going on, but didn't give any earlier indication that he was listening.

"Haha, shut up dude," Abaddon laughed.

"Who was that?" Kathleen asked confused.

"That was Cinder. She's also an old friend from Marrowshin," he explained as he lay back on his bed. "Jealous?"

"Nope, not in the slightest," Kathleen lied.

To be honest, she didn't like the way that Cinder was touching him. It gave her bad vibes, but she wasn't sure if it was jealousy or her instincts warning her of a potential threat.

"I have more important things to think about, like sleeping," Kathleen retorted.

She went to her bed and slipped under the blankets. She lay on her side and closed her eyes as she tried to go to sleep. Although, there was still something bugging her about Cinder. Abaddon claimed to have seen them around the island, but Kathleen was pretty sure that she knew all of their friends from home. This put much doubt into her mind and she thought, _"Why does it feel as though he's hiding something?"_


	9. Chapter 9

_Ch. 9_

The next day, Abaddon and his friends were having lunch with teams RWBY and JNPR in the school cafeteria. Everyone was talking about studying for the upcoming midterm exams. Professors Port and Goodwitch were the least of their worries, but Oobleck was top priority as he had a habit of assigning massive amounts of homework.

"Ugghh, this exam is gonna be the death of me," Jurano whined.

"That's because you don't study since you've been hanging out with Velvet most of the time," Emma teased.

Jurano flicked her off while she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Oooooo, JJ has the lucky rabbit's foot," Yang mused, wiggling her eyebrows at him.

"Well, we have started dating. So you could think of it that way," Jurano replied.

"And maybe in return, she'll want a bite of your big juicy carrot, if you know what I mean," Yang said.

Everyone groaned at Yang's joke. Blake merely shook her head. Out of the whole group, Abaddon and Jurano were the only ones laughing.

"Yang, could you not!" Weiss screamed.

Ruby looked confused. "Wait, I don't understand why it's so funny?

"You'll understand in a few years," Yang told Ruby as she patted her younger sibling's head.

"And who would you be interested in Yang?" Pyrrha asked.

"Hmmm," Yang looked around at the boys currently sitting at their table. She decided she would just have some fun and tease a few of them.

"Maybe I like the silent type who can cook," she said, earning a raised eyebrow from Ren.

"Maybe I like the valiant blonde," she said, causing Jaune to look around before he figured out she was talking about him.

"Or maybe I like the alpha wolf," she said last as Abaddon smiled and winked at her.

"Just kidding guys! I don't have anyone in mind at the moment," she laughed.

Just then, Mercury approached the table behind Abaddon.

"Hey chief," Mercury said to Abaddon.

"Hey dude. How's it goin?" he responded, giving Mercury a fist bump.

"Nothing much. Just tryin to find Neo," Mercury said. "Her semblance makes it hard to find her."

"This is how she plays with her friends. Don't worry, she'll surprise you when you least expect it. In the meantime, let me introduce you to my friends. This is Kathleen, Emma, and Jurano; my team," Abaddon said introducing each of his teammates.

"Hey," greeted Mercury, "And I recognize RWBY and JNPR from initiation, when your teams were announced."

"Mercury right? Where's your team?" Ruby asked.

"I'm looking for one of them. Her name's Neopolitan, but we call her Neo. The other two are in the school gardens on the other side of campus," Mercury answered.

"Abaddon, from what you said earlier it sounds you know Neo," Kathleen stated.

"Yeah, she used to live on Marrowshin a while back, but she moved here to Vale. She's a lot like Emma, but quiet and smaller," Abaddon told them.

"Ooo, I wanna meet her!" Emma cheered.

And right when she said that, a small girl with brown and pink hair jumped on Abaddon's back.

"See what I mean! Just like Emma," Abaddon said

Emma then rushed over and joined Neo by jumping on Abaddon's chest, almost knocking him off balance. Everyone laughed at the trio.

"You're both 17, and yet you act like little kids," Abaddon laughed.

"Hey Neo. Since you remind him of me, do you also call him by his nickname?" Emma asked.

"Yeah, and he's told me a lot about you Emma. It's nice to finally meet you," Neo replied as they still clung on to the boy.

"Usually Neo stays mute around new people, but since she knows all about Emma through me, she'll have no problem getting along with her," Abaddon explained to the others.

"Oh really?" Nora mused. "Hey Neo! How do you spell your full name?"

Neo looked back at Nora and merely shrugged.

"Like Abaddon said, Neo won't answer you verbally. She'll only use physical gestures. By the way Neo, where were you?" Mercury asked.

"I was following you the whole time," Neo giggled.

"I should've known," he said shaking his head. "I'm gonna go check on the others. You coming Neo?"

"Go ahead, I'm gonna stay with Abby a little while longer," she said.

"Alright, if that's what you want," he replied as he prepared to leave.

"It was nice seeing ya Merc," Abaddon said.

"Nice seeing all of you too," Mercury said as he walked out of the cafeteria.

"I hope he comes back, he's cute," Yang added.

"Only you would want him back for that reason," Blake said.

After Mercury left, Neo climbed up Abaddon's back and sat on his shoulders. "So what do you wanna do today?"

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

A slight breeze blew through the flora of the Beacon gardens, causing the many rows of flowers to sway back and forth. Butterflies flew about on colorful fragile wings, landing on a flower every now and then. Amidst all of them, one butterfly chose to flutter deeper into the garden and through the flower arch tunnels until it came to the large domed center. This walk in greenhouse carried many delicate plants from the different kingdoms, from the snow white roses of Atlas to the golden daffodils of Vacuo. There were four open entrances into the dome, each with a grey cobblestone path that stopped at the flowing fountain that stood in the center of the four way intersection and a large opening in the dome's ceiling for the sunshine to go through. It was here that the butterfly landed on the head of Cinder, who had been in the garden since her class ended. She was happy to get some fresh air. As she sat on a bench near the fountain, Cinder picked up a red rose and marveled at its beauty as she sniffed it. The rose's scent was clean and vibrant to her senses. She held on to the rose as she looked up through the dome at the blue sky.

" _You don't always get a chance to see nature at its utmost beauty like this,"_ she thought.

"Hey Cinder," said Emerald as she entered the greenhouse dome.

She had been outside the garden the whole time after a couple of birds decided to use her for target practice. They narrowly missed their mark and Emerald scurried away, with no intention of getting bird poo on her clothes.

"Hey, I'm surprised you made it in here without getting targeted by more birds," Cinder chuckled.

"Stupid animals," Emerald cursed, eyeing the two robins that were sitting nearby on the fountain.

As she sat down next to Cinder, Mercury entered the greenhouse, wiping a small bit of poo off his right shoulder.

"Hey girls," he said as he threw the napkin he was using into a nearby trashcan. "I didn't know the birds were dropping bombs today. I came to check on you."

"We're fine. Cinder's taking in the scenery while I just wanna get away from Port and his irritating tales of youth," Emerald replied.

"I don't like his stories either," Cinder added.

"I don't listen to that old ass man. I've slept through all his babbling so far and he has yet to notice me," Mercury chuckled.

Emerald smiled, then gazed behind Mercury. "Hey, where's Neo? Did you find her yet?" she asked.

"Yeah, I found her. That toddler was following me the whole time. I left her with the wolf faunus, Abaddon," Mercury replied.

At the mention of Abaddon's name, Cinder smiled and gazed back at her rose with a small chuckle. Emerald and Mercury noticed this and exchanged confused looks. They knew Cinder had a great deal of things she had yet to tell them after she took them on as her teammates. She was always a mystery, but now they wanted to know what she knew.

"How do you know that faunus Cinder? You've never told us anything about him except his reputation with the White Fang and as far as we can tell, only you and Neo have history with him," Emerald said.

"We were just acquaintances back then, working to achieve a …..similar goal. I met both Abaddon and Neo when I was in Vacuo. They were on some quest to stop a rouge group of White Fang, the extremist ones, not the peaceful protest kind. We traveled around Remnant for about 3 years, and after that Abaddon just vanished, taking Neo with him," Cinder explained gracefully. She didn't look like she was upset at all, only amused. She continued to marvel at the rose, as if it was the most beautiful one she had ever seen.

"And that's it?" Mercury asked.

"Yes, just poof, and they were gone. Then a few months afterwards I found you two," Cinder replied.

Mercury and Emerald were still unconvinced, they knew there were some holes in Cinder's story. It was too plain and simple. Plus she didn't have any other reaction besides that amusing smile she kept on her face when she spoke.

"But what about the way you and he, Abaddon, were…..ya'know? In the library?" Emerald asked.

"Yeah, it seems to me that you guys were more than just 'acquaintances,'" Mercury added.

"Oh, I forgot about that. Well, you could say that during those years Abaddon and I were kind of a couple," Cinder chuckled. She didn't mind telling them this. It was one of the few subjects she liked to share, just to see the look on Emerald and Mercury's faces.

Emerald was wide eyed for a minute. "I don't believe this." She couldn't take in what Cinder said. She had known their leader as a strong, collected, and intelligent woman in the few years they had been with her. In Emerald's mind, there was no way in hell Cinder could've had any interest in a guy like Abaddon. Just by looking at him, she could tell that he wasn't the kind of person that Cinder would fall for.

Mercury wasn't as shocked as Emerald was, but did have an eyebrow raised. "Whoa, didn't see that comin." He never expected Cinder to actually be interested in someone, thinking she had high standards due to past rejections to men that had tried to talk to her. "I wonder…," he said aloud.

"What?" both Cinder and Emerald asked simultaneously.

"Three years is a long time." Mercury waggled his eyebrows and smiled as he asked his next question. "Did you two ever….get busy?"

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"It's about time I close up shop," said the old gray haired owner of From Dust Till Dawn.

He had been working at his shop since 8 in the morning, something he had been doing for years now since he lived in the city. He closed the cash register and locked it, then proceeded towards the front door. He had already cleaned, checked stock, and everything else he was supposed to do. The old man turned off the lights and exited the door. He turned, and with his key, locked the door behind him. After that, he pocketed his keys and casually strolled down the street towards his home.

Although, he failed to notice a Grimm masked figure in a hooded black cloak sitting on the roof above.

"Humans are so predictable," said the perpetrator as he silently landed on the street in front of the shop.

He waited until the old man was out of earshot to signal for his allies. Out of an alley next to the building came three others who were also wearing the same hooded black cloak and mask but lacking the red designs that their ally had, which marked him as the leader. They assembled in front of the shop waiting for their leader's signal. He nodded, and the biggest of the four broke the windows with his bare hands. All of them jumped through into the shop.

"Alright, gather all the dust you can and load it into the truck in the alley. We have to work quickly before any civilians see us," the leader demanded.

The others nodded and began going through the entirety of the shop, stealing all the dust and dust crystals they could grab. Every handful was brought into the alley they came out of and placed into the back of a concealed dark grey truck. After almost an hour, they managed to pick the shop clean of its merchandise.

"Can I take the cash?" one of them asked.

"No, we don't need the cash. We only need the dust," their leader replied. "Let's wrap it up guys. Get in the truck."

Everyone exited the shop and sprinted into the alley. While two of them piled into the back with the dust and closed the door, the leader and the big guy went into the front seats. The leader took the driver's side while his ally sat in the passenger's seat. He started the truck, then backed out of the alley and down the road. They drove through the city until they reached its slums, were they were safe to take of their masks. The big guy in the passenger seat took off his mask and hood, revealing a pale skinned boy with orange eyes, a strong set jaw, and short straight brown hair.

"What do the White Fang need all this dust for anyway Desmond?" he asked.

Desmond took off his mask and hood as well. He had a fair complexion with dark red eyes and medium length spiky red hair.

"I don't know Coreg," Desmond replied, "but I do know that my older brother needs it for something. Something that will allow faunus to surpass humans in every way possible. We've got a lot of things ahead of us. I just hope that our efforts will pay off and maybe he'll congratulate us personally."

Then Desmond thought, _"And maybe I'll finally make you proud for once big brother."_


	10. Chapter 10

_Ch. 10_

As the days went by for the students of Beacon, they were informed of the Vytal Festival: an event that happens every two years in which students from different combat schools around Remnant come together to participate in a tournament. Everyone was encouraged to practice for the tournament as many exchange students from schools such as Haven and Shade began coming in bit by bit. Unlike everyone else who was preoccupied with getting to know the competition, Ruby was drawn to the kinds of weapons that they carried.

"Oh my gosh! I saw so many kinds of weapons! There was a laser gun that could turn into a trident, a bladed crossbow, and even a bow staff that transforms into a pair of gun nun chucks! This. Is. Awesome!" Ruby screamed.

Ruby, along with her team, and KAJE, were hanging out in a small pavilion with a domed roof supported by white pillars. The middle of the pavilion dipped down in stone stairs that ended in a circular flat opening used either for plays that were being performed or even battles for all to see. It was one of several around the school grounds. After a grueling midterm exam from Oobleck early that morning, they decided to go see the exchange students that were coming in. Weiss had a plan to "observe" the competition so she could see who the real threats were in the tournament, but this plan ultimately failed.

"I can't believe I was unable to observe anyone. How come Ruby was able to see all those weapons?" Weiss whined.

"Maybe because they didn't want a snobby ice queen stalking them and being nosy," Blake said, causing several others to chuckle.

"I see Yang's rubbing off on you a bit Blake," Jurano said.

"Maybe," Blake replied.

"Hmph, well I won't give up yet," Weiss stated.

"Calm down ice queen. You don't need to do that. With just some practice and a little bit of teamwork, I'm sure we'll conquer any huntsmen team that gets in our way," Yang said proudly.

"There is one problem in that equation Yang," Jurano said.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Us," Jurano replied, standing and raising his arms to include his entire team. "I bet we could blow you guys right out of the water."

"No way!" Ruby yelled.

"You wish," Weiss added.

"Pffft, as if," Yang said. "I could beat you with one 'Yang' tied behind my back."

Everyone groaned at Yang's joke.

"Boooo! Get off the stage!" Emma said.

"Well, back to what I was saying," Jurano continued. "When we were just little kids, we were trained by one of the best. I have full confidence in my team's victory in the tournament."

Suddenly, Ruby's giant scythe stabbed into the ground in front of Jurano, causing him to jump back in surprise.

"Does this help your 'confidence'?" Ruby asked as she brandished her huge sniper scythe.

"Whoa, easy there Ruby," Jurano said, his hands up in a friendly gesture.

Although, another huge scythe implanted in the ground near Ruby's. It was similar to hers, but had two large serrated blades sitting side by side with dual blue green rifle barrels integrated into the staff portion. The staff portion was black and curved with white wraps on the handles and a trigger to use the rifle function. The scythe also had a smaller blade opposite its regular ones and a dagger like blade at the bottom of the staff.

"Does this answer your question Ruby?" Emma asked.

"Why don't you two go at it then?" Abaddon asked.

"I'm not sure this is the best place for that," Blake said.

"Why not? Their weapons are already out, there's barely anyone around, and the pavilion clearly has enough space. What do you say girls?" Abaddon asked.

"I'm game!" Ruby said cheerfully.

"Me too!" Emma answered.

"Alright it's settled. Let's see who the best reaper is," Abaddon announced. "Ruby and her Crescent Rose, or Emma and her Umbra Claws. Let's go!"

Jurano and Yang both sat down with their teams while Ruby and Emma moved to opposite sides of the arena. They faced each other and took their battle positions.

Yang held up one hand to signal the fight to begin. "You guys ready? Aaaaaaannddd, GO!"

Ruby rushed in first and took a wide swing at Emma. Emma flipped over Ruby and slashed at her, but the little girl used her speed semblance to quickly turn around and block it. As Emma landed, Ruby used her speed once more to quickly dash and slash at the cat faunus from the left. Emma saw this coming and used her teleportation to appear behind Ruby and delivered a solid roundhouse kick to her back. Ruby was thrown back, but quickly recovered and dashed forward. She used her speed to perform consecutive dashes around Emma to confuse her. Then she hit Emma with an upward slash that sent her up into the air, then quickly jumped into the air above Emma and kicked her back to ground. Emma was dazed, but quickly came to her senses.

"I can do that too Ruby."

Emma's scythe changed into its second form. The staff split into two smaller halves, each carrying one of the serrated blades. Emma aimed her smaller dual scythes at Ruby and began firing her rifles. Ruby dodged the bullets and rushed straight towards Emma. The cat faunus teleported right before Ruby could strike her and appeared to her right with another kick to Ruby's side. Ruby jumped away from Emma, but then she rushed at the silver eyed girl and disappeared once more. Then, in rapid succession, Emma teleported all around Ruby. It was similar to what Ruby did earlier, but Emma was able to deliver a volley of quick strikes that Ruby couldn't follow. After that, Ruby fell to her knees, breathing hard from Emma's assault. Emma combined her mini scythes back into one and folded it into its compact double barreled rifle form, then clipped it to its holster on the back of her coat. She went up to Ruby and held out her hand, which Ruby accepted and stood up.

"That was amazing!" Ruby said.

"Your speed is pretty awesome too Ruby," Emma replied.

The others stood up from their seats and joined the two girls on the stage.

"You did your best Rubes," Yang said as she hugged her sister.

"Thanks sis," Ruby replied to her older sister.

Kathleen gave Emma a hug and after her Abaddon picked Emma up and sat her on his shoulders.

"You've really improved Emma. I've never seen you do that before," Kathleen said.

"I have," Jurano said. "We were practicing to improve her semblance use a few months ago. She kicked my ass with that move once. I was sore all over my body."

Abaddon then looked over at Ruby. "You feelin okay Ruby?" he asked.

"Sure, I'm fine," she said.

Then suddenly a growling noise emanated from both Emma and Ruby. They both clutched their empty stomachs in dismay.

"I am kinda hungry though since we skipped lunch," Ruby said shyly.

"Feed me Abby," Emma demanded.

"Alright kitty, as you command. Come on guys, let's head to the city and get something to eat," Abaddon said.

"Thanks, but I don't have much Lien left in my wallet," Yang said.

"No worries. Weiss and I are going to pay," Abaddon replied.

"Hey, don't I get a say in this? What gives you the right to make that kind of decision?" Weiss snorted with her hands on her hips.

"Because you're a beautiful snow angel with a kind heart that everyone here appreciates and we'd be nothing without you," Abaddon said sweetly.

"Well, that's very sweet of you to say Abaddon. I'll pay for the food, but next time you shouldn't outright include me in something without my say," she said before leading the way to the air pad.

"Did you really mean all that?" Kathleen whispered as the group caught up with Weiss.

"Kinda, but I just wanted her to pay for everyone's food. Plus she's a Schnee so she's full of herself and can literally make it rain Lien if she wanted to," Abaddon whispered back.

"You're such a dick," Kathleen laughed, elbowing him in the ribs.

"But I'm your dick," he replied.

Kathleen laughed harder. "I don't even know how to respond to that!"

"That's Abby for ya," Emma giggled.

Everyone walked through campus to the airpad and boarded an airship to the city. Once there, they decided headed towards a burger joint that Yang recommended since the place on Weiss had in mind was too classy for their taste. Although, on the way, the group got lost since Yang didn't remember the exact way to the restaurant.

"Yang admit it. You have no idea where you're going," Weiss said.

"Look, I'm sure it's just down this street over here," Yang said.

"It better be. My feet are killing me," Ruby whined.

They continued to walk down the street they were currently on. As they reached the end of it at a crossroads, Emma felt something tap on her lower back. She turned around to see who it was and smiled. Since she was still sitting on Abaddon's neck, she tugged on his ears to get his attention.

"Abby, look behind you. We have company," she whispered in one of his ears.

Abaddon turned around only to see Neo jump on him once again. She smiled as he picked her up.

"Neo, what're you doing here?" Abaddon asked.

"I could ask you the same thing," Neo replied.

She climbed up his torso until she was sitting on his shoulders with her legs crossing over Emma's. When they were eye level, they high fived. Unfortunately for Abaddon, Neo had a very inconvenient spot covering his face. The others saw this and laughed at them.

"Wow," Blake shook her head.

"Hey Fido, how's the view?" Yang chuckled.

Abaddon's voice came out muffled as Neo's body still covered his mouth and nose, preventing him from speaking or breathing. She finally jumped down from his shoulders and gracefully landed on the ground in front of him.

"Neo, even though you and Emma both like using me as a jungle gym doesn't mean you can smother me with your vagina ok," Abaddon said to her through ragged breathes.

Everyone laughed after he said that.

"And that's probably the closest he'll get to one too," Jurano whispered to Yang, who laughed even harder at his joke.

"No promises Abaddon," she said.

"Whatever. Where are the others anyway?" Abaddon asked.

"They're in that bookstore right there." Neo pointed to the shop that they just passed a minute ago. "I was bored and came out when I saw you guys through the window. Also, Cinder wants to talk to you."

"Yeah, I was trying to find her the other day, but couldn't," Abaddon said.

"Who's Cinder?" Blake asked.

"His secret girlfriend," Jurano blurted out. "She came to our dorm one day asking him to come over to her room. She told him he could sleep in her bed."

"Ooooo, Abaddon, I didn't know you played like that," Yang cooed.

"First of all, I don't. Second, she's not my girlfriend. She's just an old friend," Abaddon explained in a slightly annoyed tone.

That's when the door to the bookstore opened and Mercury and Emerald came out. When they caught sight of Abaddon and the others, Mercury waved while Emerald simply crossed her arms. The duo walked over to the group, Emerald looking somewhat reluctant to meet them.

"Were you bored as well Merc?" Abaddon asked.

"Naw, I got the comic books I wanted," Mercury said. "Emerald here just felt impatient, as usual."

"Whatever," she huffed.

Everyone could tell that something was clearly bothering her. Every now and then, she would glare at Abaddon. This left him confused since he didn't know what he did wrong.

"Is she okay?" Blake asked Mercury.

"Yeah, just got a few things on my mind. That's all," Emerald answered. She still had trouble trusting others that weren't part of here team, but it was Abaddon that seemed to stand out. It wasn't the fact that he and Cinder had a relationship in the past, it was the fact that she still seemed to be so intoxicated by him and that there seemed to be a certain secret between them that Cinder was reluctant to tell her or Mercury.

"Well why don't you come with us to get something to eat," Ruby suggested.

Emerald weakly smiled and nodded at the little girl. "Sure, I'd like that."

"See, there's the smile I've been waiting for all day," Mercury added.

"Hey guys, where's your leader?" Weiss asked.

"Oh, Cinder's still in the store. The owner's wife has a greenhouse on the roof, so Cinder went up there to read," Mercury said.

"Thanks for the info Merc," Abaddon said. "She wanted to talk to me about something. I'll join you all later alright." The others nodded. Abaddon knelt down so Emma could climb off of him, then walked towards the bookstore. The others, including Mercury and Emerald, continued down the street as Yang went back to her lost search for the burger joint.

Abaddon entered the store after seeing them round the corner. The inside was bigger than the small two story building showed. There were rows upon rows of bookshelves along with coffee tables and wooden or plush chairs to sit comfortably in. The store was lit by lanterns, but the open windows provided most of the light.

Abaddon walked up to the front counter, which is on the other side of the room, parallel to the door. A middle aged man with short brown hair, a green collared shirt, brown eyes, and eye glasses was reading a book at the counter until he spotted Abaddon approaching him.

"Well hello young man," he said as he straightened up. "How can I help you?"

"I was told a friend of mine is in your wife's greenhouse. Is it okay if I go in there too?" Abaddon asked.

"Oh, not a problem. Only four people at a time are allowed and it's 5 Lien for each." Abaddon pulled out five Lien from his pocket and gave it to the man. "Alright, that staircase to my right will lead you up to the roof where the greenhouse lies. Be sure not to break anything. The wife will have my hide if you do," he said.

"I'll be careful sir," Abaddon said as he walked to the doorway that went into the staircase. He walked up the stairs, past the second floor, until he reached a black door. He opened the door into a large greenhouse with light green semi-translucent walls and windows. It looked like it occupied the entire roof, shaped like a dome with many exotic plants either sitting in makeshift gardens on the walls or large shelves, or hanging from the ceiling in small baskets. Abaddon walked through the giant house of flora, with its blue tiled floor, and taking in the fresh air until he came to hexagonal clearing. In the middle stood a grey stone table with three curved stone benches encircling it. On one of these benches sat Cinder, in her usual red dress. She had taken her shoes off and was reading a black book with red trim.

Abaddon smiled and walked towards her. "You were always attracted to places like this."

"Why not?" she said as she closed the book and placed it beside her. "When undisturbed by Grimm, nature can be filled with such wonder."

Abaddon sat down beside her with his arms crossed. Cinder laced her arms around his left arm and lay her head on his shoulder, eyes closed. At first, Abaddon thought she would try to swoon him like she usually did, but she just seemed relaxed that he was here with her.

"So what did you wanna talk about Cin?" Abaddon asked.

"Well, I have news for you. I found some new info about the White Fang a while ago, though you'd want to hear it." Cinder didn't move from her spot while she spoke, but she could feel Abaddon tense up a bit. He should've known the news would be related to them since he killed most of that squad in Junior's club.

"I know they're in Vale again Cin. I encountered some the other night. I shouldn't be surprised since they changed the entire protest regime into a terrorist group. They've been popping up on the news lately," Abaddon said.

"It's not that," she said. She sat up and looked him dead in the face when she said the next thing. "I found some intel on their plans. They've gotten their hands on more Longinus pieces."


	11. Chapter 11

_CH. 11_

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" Abaddon screamed.

Cinder flinched, but only slightly. After all, it wasn't the first time she heard him scream like that. She could see his temper flaring. "Abaddon calm down. Let's just think about what we should do ok?"

Abaddon took two deep breaths, his temper melting away as fast as it had come. He had to keep calm, having a breakdown right now wouldn't be beneficial. "Alright, I'm cool now. But…to think we spent so much time collecting six Longinus pieces, only for those damn idiots to have obtained even more. I thought that was the last of it. Cinder, how did you get this information?"

"Wellll," Cinder started, "on my way to Vale I managed to stumble upon a small camp of White Fang in the wilderness of Mistral. I was surprised that they had an encampment that close to the city. Mercury, Emerald, Neo, and I decided to infiltrate the camp during the night. Luckily, they were too laid back to notice us when we started picking off their men, knocking them unconscious. I held their leader at knife point, in exchange he gave me information that I would want to know."

"Go on," said Abaddon.

"During our absence, they came out of hiding once they were sure that we had disappeared. It turns out they already knew that there were more Longinus pieces and quickly managed to find the remaining ones around Remnant. He didn't tell me how they were able to locate them. Now those pieces are in custody of their leaders," Cinder explained.

"Leaders?" Abaddon asked. "Does that include..?"

Cinder nodded and continued. "The man you were seeking is one of their four leaders. Although, before I could get anymore intel from the captain, he died. He had taken a pill beforehand that was slowly killing him as he was talking. Afterwards I burned the camp to the ground in order to cover our tracks."

After Cinder had finished, Abaddon closed his eyes, the information he had received swimming through his mind. Dammit, how were the White Fang able to hide so well? He could've stopped them from getting this far in their mission. He knew they wanted to rid Remnant of humans, but there was more to it than that. Much more.

"Do Neo and the others know of this?" Abaddon asked.

"No," Cinder answered. "I was alone when I entered his quarters. Didn't you say that we shouldn't get our friends involved?"

"Yeah, I haven't told my friends, but my parents know some of it. Neo was with us during those years, but she knows not to say anything," Abaddon sighed. The White Fang would have to be dealt with, but for now they should relax for just a little while.

"Thanks for telling me this Cinder. Now let's join the others and get something to eat. You hungry?" Abaddon asked.

Cinder smiled. "You're welcome. And I am hungry, but not for food. I currently have something else in mind." Cinder placed a hand on Abaddon's cheek and tried to inch closer to his face. She was almost an inch from his lips when he placed a finger on hers and a loud growl emanated from her stomach.

"Not hungry for food huh?" Abaddon mused.

"I could use a salad right about now," Cinder said weakly as she clutched her stomach.

Abaddon stood up. "Good, cause that's the only thing your lips will be touching today."

Cinder stood up as well and dusted off her dress, then collected her book. "Fine, but that doesn't stop me from maybe making a certain someone jealous," She said as she walked towards the greenhouse exit.

"Jealous? What do you mean by that?" Abaddon asked in confusion. He caught up to her as she opened the door the staircase.

"My, my, as always you still have a great deal to learn about women." Cinder walked down the stairs, with Abaddon just behind her sporting a troubled face. He was really confused. What was Cinder talking about?

It was later that week that teams were assigned their first missions. These missions usually ranged from city patrols to Grimm extermination, but nevertheless, many first years were excited for the experience. Team KAJE entered the amphitheater amongst the large crowds of students to get their assignment. Each member wore a travel backpack, in case the trip was a lengthy one. They went up to one of the large screens that stood above the stage area, where teams could type in their name and select what mission to go on. Abaddon his touched the screen, scrolling through the various assignments. All of the options involving tasks within the city seemed boring to him. He wanted some real action, so he continued scrolling until he found what he was looking for. It was a Grimm extermination mission, deep into the heart of Emerald forest.

"You would pick that one," Emma mused.

"Why not? Destroying Grimm is fun. Well for me it is," Abaddon replied.

"As long as an Ursa doesn't rip my pants again," Jurano said. He remembered two years ago when an Ursa attacked him on a field trip back at their previous combat school. Jurano didn't have any trouble killing it, but he failed to notice that the Ursa managed to slash the back of his pants open. He spent the entire field trip with everyone laughing at his rabbit patterned boxers. Jurano blushed in embarrassment at the memory.

"Just don't get carried away like last time. You were too cocky," Kathleen laughed, causing Jurano to blush even harder.

Abaddon looked back at the screen and noticed a detail about the mission that he hadn't seen earlier. "Hey guys, looks like this is a two team mission. It says the area is too dangerous for one team alone," he told them.

"Okay, why don't we just ask RWBY, JNPR, CFVY, or MNCE?" Emma suggested.

"Ask us what?" Abaddon and the others turned to see RWBY and MNCE. Each member of both teams carried a backpack filled with supplies.

"We were gonna ask if you wanted to accompany us on our mission since we wanted to be partnered with a team that we know, but it seems your hands are already full," Kathleen said.

"Yeah, we already have our mission," Ruby replied. "We're going to investigate strange Grimm activities in Mount. Glenn. It seems there are way more Grimm than normal."

"A huntsman is supposed to accompany us as well. Frankly, I'm worried that we won't get the full experience," said Weiss.

"The only experience I need is kicking some Grimm ass," Yang said.

"We haven't chosen a mission yet," Mercury pointed out.

"Oh good, would you like to join us?" Jurano asked.

"Sure," Cinder replied.

"Speak for yourself," Emerald huffed, apparently aggravated at the ordeal.

Cinder walked up to the screen Abaddon was using and typed her team's name in, assigning them to the mission. "There you go. Also, we should head to the landing pads now. The briefing says our ride will be here in a few minutes."

"Well, since you guys are settled, we'll be going too. See ya later!" Ruby said as she and her team left the amphitheater.

"Alright everyone, let's go." Abaddon led the way as both teams made their way through campus. As they approached the landing pads, they caught sight of a bullhead that was waiting for them.

"And theirs our ride," Mercury said.

As the group headed towards the bullhead, Abaddon noticed someone was missing. He counted everyone and found that Neo wasn't among the group. Looking back, he saw her at the back, her backpack slowing her down. Abaddon went over to her and gently pulled her pack off her.

"Feel better?" he asked.

Neo straightened her back. "Yeah."

"Hurry and get on the ship. I've got your bag," Abaddon said as he hefted Neo's bag onto his left shoulder.

Neo hurried onto the bullhead with their teammates. Abaddon entered a few seconds behind, then closed the cargo door. After the door closed, the lights in the passenger area turned on. Abaddon walked over to Neo, who was already in her seat along with everyone else, and dropped her bag at her feet.

"Whaddaya have in their? Small bodies?" Abaddon joked.

"No, just some things I thought I would need. Mainly food," Neo replied with an adorable smile.

"Probably anything sweet, as usual," Abaddon said before heading to the cockpit.

He greeted the pilot and sat in the passenger's seat. The pilot began flipping switches on the cockpits console, bringing the engine to life with a soft purr. Everyone felt the bullhead lift up off the ground and into the air, soaring high over the grounds of Beacon Academy.

"Anyone feeling sick back there?" Abaddon yelled.

Everyone except Emerald said "no."

"Can I get an amen from Emerald please?" Abaddon exclaimed.

"Fuck off!" she yelled in response.

"That's the spirit!" Abaddon said.

It took almost half an hour to reach their destination: A clearing in the Emerald Forest that lay a good distance past the mountains. There were no Grimm nearby at the moment, so the bullhead descended until it barely touched the ground. The cargo door opened, allowing everyone to exit.

"Alright, here's your stop. Once you've cleansed the area, be sure to contact me on these communicators. Happy hunting!" The pilot gave Abaddon a small box filled with eight ear communicators.

"Thanks!" Abaddon took the box as he left the cockpit. He saw that Neo and Kathleen left their packs, probably wanting to travel light. Ignoring their things, Abaddon picked up his own from beside one of the empty seats and exited the bullhead, closing the cargo door shut. The bullhead then ascended into the air and took off past the mountains.

"Alright, I suppose you all have what you need?" Abaddon asked.

His answer came with the sound of unsheathed weapons and donned equipment.

"So what's the exact objective here chief?" Mercury asked.

"From what I read in the mission report, Grimm numbers here have gotten a little high. Also, some witnesses have reported seeing a new kind of Grimm, so we'd best be on our guard. This area is pretty large, so we should split into teams of two to cover more ground. We can communicate faster using these." Abaddon held out the box of communicators. Everyone reached in, grabbed one, and donned the earpieces.

"I suggest that we all go with our team partners. That means me and Kathleen, Jurano and Emma, Cinder and Neo, and finally Mercury and Emerald. Once everyone gives me the all clear, we'll meet back up in this clearing for extraction. You all cool with that?" Abaddon asked, to which all his teammates nodded.

"Alright then, let's go."

At that, every pair strolled off into the dense forest in different directions.

Abaddon and Kathleen ventured deep into the forest northwest of the clearing. They walked for about ten minutes, but had yet to stumble across any kinds of Grimm. Abaddon had been itching to break some skulls, but he guessed he would have to wait for that.

"This is strange. This area is supposed to be crawling with these damn things and we've yet to see even one," Abaddon said.

"I wonder if the others have had any luck." Kathleen turned on her communicator to contact their teammates. "Hey guys, any sightings so far?"

"Nope," Jurano answered.

"Nothing," Cinder replied.

"Same here," Mercury said.

"Alright, keep searching. We're bound to run into something soon." Kathleen turned off her communicator. She looked at Abaddon and shrugged.

"Well, this is such a bother," Abaddon whined.

"Maybe a roaming huntsman came by and killed them off?" Kathleen concluded.

Suddenly, there was a huge commotion ahead of them. It sounded like a band of beowulves attacking something. Abaddon and Kathleen sprinted towards the sound until they reached its source: a small group of eight beowulves. The strange thing was that they were attacking each other.

"What do you make of this?" Kathleen asked, looking towards her partner. Although, judging by the frustrated look on his face, she knew he didn't like it.

Both Abaddon and Kathleen rushed the unsuspecting Grimm. Grabbing one of his short swords, Abaddon beheaded one of the wolves as it was biting its kin to the ground. The boy then put his right foot on the chest of the grounded wolf and crushed its head with his left foot. The other six beowulves snapped out of their fighting and charged Abaddon. Kathleen dashed towards them and fired off three rounds from her swords, felling three beowulves with headshots. Using her semblance, she caused a quick gust of wind to propel the three remaining wolves forward. Kathleen tightened her grip on both of her swords as the Grimm flew through the air towards her. Once they were close, in three swift movements, Kathleen slashed through each of them. Their severed bodies tumbled to the ground.

"It's like you love to show off your skill," Abaddon said clapping.

"And you love to show off your strength," Kathleen replied with a smile.

She was about to sheathe her swords when an Ursa Major came crashing through the bushes. Although, it didn't attack them immediately and instead was running around in a panic. The Ursa roared every now and then, as if it was in excruciating pain. Kathleen rushed towards the Grimm, using a gust of wind to increase her speed, but then the Ursa stopped. Its body began shaking and puffing up.

"Kathleen, get back now!" Abaddon yelled.

Kathleen skidded to a halt only a few feet from the Ursa, then produced another gust to dash back beside Abaddon. He grabbed Kathleen's wrist, pulling her behind him then putting both the shield gauntlets on his arms together to form his mega shield. A second later, the Ursa's body exploded, sending bone fragments in every direction. Some shards were embedded in the ground, in trees, and even in a few large rocks.

Abaddon collapsed his shield. "That was close." He gave Kathleen a hand as she stood up.

"What the hell was that?" she asked.

"No time to figure it out right now." Abaddon turned on his communicator. "Does everyone still have zero contact with the Grimm?" Every one responded, still with no conflicts. "Alright, I need everyone to come to my location. Use your scrolls to link to my communicator signal. Also, you should hurry, because the situation just got complicated."


	12. Chapter 12

_CH. 12_

"What do you think the problem is?" Emma asked Jurano as they jogged through the forest. They were sitting against a tree trunk and having a small snack when they received Abaddon's message. The urgency in his voice made them quickly get up and head towards his location.

"I don't know, but he said things have gotten complicated so we have to be on our guard." Jurano checked his scroll again. The map on the screen indicated that the signal from Abaddon and Kathleen's communicators were a few meters ahead. "We should be close now."

They jogged for a few more minutes until they came into a small opening in the brush. They saw Abaddon sitting on the ground with his arms crossed while Kathleen sat next to him.

"Hey guys," Kathleen said.

Just then Cinder, Emerald, Mercury, and Neo entered the small clearing.

"Well, looks like we're all here," Mercury said.

"What did you call us for?" Emerald asked.

Kathleen stood up and dusted herself off. "Well, we found a couple of beowulves earlier, but they fighting amongst one another. We killed them and an Ursa came, but it was freaking out as if it was in great pain and just exploded."

"Beowulves fighting each other? Exploding Ursai? You've got to be kidding. Were you hallucinating or something?," Emerald scoffed.

"If we were kidding or hallucinating, then I wouldn't have called you all here," Abaddon said. "Emma, do you hear that?"

Not knowing what Abaddon was talking about, Emma listened carefully to the area around. Her cat ears twitched. It was faint but, she could hear what sounded like digging. "It sounds like digging machinery, like an excavation site."

"Right." Abaddon took out his scroll and widened it to tablet size so everyone could see the screen. It was an old map of Vale. He increased the magnification to focus on their location. "This map of Vale shows that when they tried to expand past the mountains years ago, one of the first buildings made was a dust factory. "

Everyone looked at the map and saw the factory's location, which was relatively close to their position.

"That factory is just a bit north of this clearing," Mercury said.

"That's also the direction where the Ursa came from," Kathleen surmised. "But it doesn't explain why those Grimm were acting strange."

Abaddon closed his scroll and pocketed it. "We should see what's going on at that factory. It might help enlighten us."

Abaddon led the way north into the forest, with his group following close behind. After a while, they reached a cliffside that gave them a view of a large factory, the problem was that it was also surrounded by swarms of Grimm. There were beowulves, ursai, creepers, even a death stalker and king taijitu, all crowded around a large metal wall surrounding the factory grounds.

"Holy shit," Mercury and Jurano said simultaneously.

"Don't tell me you expect us to go through that," Emerald exclaimed.

"It's alright, they shouldn't notice us at all," Cinder said plainly.

"How can you be so sure? Who's to say they won't turn towards us as soon as we get down there?" Emerald said.

"Because the ones that we killed didn't attack us until we attacked them. I know it's doubtful, but it wouldn't really hurt to try," Kathleen said, with a little uncertainty in her voice.

"Unless they turn towards us," Emerald exclaimed.

"Fine, if you don't wish to tag along you can stay Emerald, and that also applies to anyone else," Abaddon said.

No else said anything, clearly wanting in on the operation.

"Well that's settled," Kathleen turned towards Abaddon. "Do you have a plan for this?"

"I do." Jurano walked to the edge of the cliff and stopped. "It's called going in, balls deep!" Then, he jumped off the edge and started to skid down the steep incline.

"I like his enthusiasm," Mercury said.

"Hope your not scared to jump!" Abaddon yelled as he leaped off the cliff.

"Wait up!" Emma joined them as well.

Cinder sighed. "As usual, when it comes to Grimm he dives in headfirst."

"Tell me about it," Kathleen whined and Neo nodded in agreement.

"Shall we ladies?" Mercury asked as he walked towards the edge. The three girls nodded and all four jumped down the slope, leaving Emerald behind.

"Great, now they're all probably gonna get torn to pieces, mostly those two idiots in the front. I'll just sit here, maybe provide some information if anything changes out here." Emerald sighed, then sat down on a nearby log as she watched her teammates rushing toward the Grimm horde.

"Not cool Kat," Jurano whined as he tried to catch up with here.

"Hey, you expected to stay in up front for that long?" Kathleen said, chancing a look behind.

Kathleen was in the lead as they sprinted towards the Grimm infested wall. Even though Jurano had a huge head start, she sped past him just to see the look on his face, but now she would have to be the first to test their theory. Would the Grimm continue their attempts to breach the wall, or would they turn on her as soon as she was close? If they did, she would have to maneuver around them to get into that factory. Looking up, she saw that the wall was close in height to the third story windows, and one in particular was open.

" _That should do."_

With an entrance in sight, Kathleen continued sprinting then jumped onto a King Taijitu, running along and up its body until she reached one of the heads and jumped off. She used an air gust to briefly glide into the open window, landing with a quick dodge roll.

" _The others shouldn't be too far behind,"_ she thought.

Her assumption was correct as Jurano landed in the room, having used his large chain scythe, Gnadenlos, as a grappling hook to swing in. Emma simply teleported in. Abaddon jumped off the Taijitu's head at the same time as Neo, then grabbed her in midair and threw her straight into the window like a football. Neo landed gracefully in the room with little visible effort while Abaddon was going down, but then somehow air dashed at the last minute to make it.

No one noticed the air dash, except Kathleen of course. She didn't know how it was possible for him to do that, plus she could've sworn that she saw a small white protrusion coming from his back. It was faint and short in appearance, but she saw it nonetheless.

" _What was that?"_ She wanted to look more into it, but they were on a mission at the moment.

Last to make it was Cinder, who had help from Mercury. He grabbed hold of Cinder's hands after they jumped of the Taijitu's head and swung her through the air and into the window. Mercury used his shotgun boots to propel himself forward right before he fell out of reach.

"Damn that close," he said as he skidded a bit along the floor.

"I'm surprised that Taijitu didn't try to snap at us. We all used it like stairs," Neo said.

"Beats me, but let's continue with the mission shall we," Abaddon said.

The room they were in was large and a bit dusty. The light bulb on the ceiling was broken, and the only light came from the window. The room had no discernible paint, as it would've probably been chipping off the walls by now. There were wooden chairs placed in four by four rows in front of a projector screen. The projector itself was nowhere to be found.

Abaddon gazed towards the door on the other side of the room. He walked towards the door, then put his ear against it to listen into the hallway.

"Abby, what're you doing that for? I doubt that anyone would be-," Emma's words were interrupted by the sound of voices and multiple footsteps. She immediately kept her mouth shut.

"Why do we have to patrol the upper levels?" one of the voices whined.

"Because Lieutenant Corvus said so. Quit yer bitching and lets go!" the other one barked.

Everyone stayed quiet and still as the two voices passed by. After a full minute, the voices were gone.

"Who do you think that was?" Emma asked, turning towards the others.

"Beats me, but maybe we should keep a low profile." Mercury turned on his communicator. "Hey Em, there are people in this building. We're going to go check it out. Notify us if anything new happens out there."

"Too late," said Emerald as she stepped from behind Mercury.

Mercury and the others stepped back surprised. "Whoa! Came to join the party?"

Emerald shrugged. "Eh, felt boring being the lookout, so I followed and came in just as those voices passed by."

"Welcome aboard," Jurano chimed in.

"Ya'know, the name of that Lieutenant sounds familiar, don't you think Cinder? Cin, you there?" Mercury noticed that Cinder had been quiet, staring in Abaddon's direction the whole time.

Mercury and the rest of the team followed her gaze. Abaddon stood near the door stretching his limbs like he was getting ready for a fight. He then proceeded to get into a pouncing position and growled.

"Abaddon?" Kathleen knew something was up.

Cinder's eyes went wide, realizing what he was about to do. "Abaddon, wait!"

Although, she was too late to stop him from charging through the wooden door, breaking it into pieces. He then ran down the left hallway where they heard the voices go. Kathleen was the first to sprint out the room after him.

"Abaddon!"

"Wait up Kathleen!" Emma and Jurano both ran after her.

Cinder and her team joined the chase as well. While they ventured down the long hallway, they heard the sounds of screaming. It was loud but cut short, like someone had just abruptly cut off the power to a loud speaker. Everyone turned a right corner to come face to face with two White Fang soldiers. Their bodies lay on the floor, blood pooling out of the gaping slash wounds on their bodies. Kathleen put both her hands to her mouth at the sight, backing away in horror.

"Whoa," Jurano said in surprise. He didn't really know what to think of it.

Emerald and Mercury stared in shock as well. Cinder had informed them that Abaddon had no qualms against killing White Fang, but they never thought that they would get to see it up close. Both Cinder and Neo were unaffected, having seen something like this before, but shared worried glances for their friends.

Emma was the most affected. She stood silent and wide eyed at the corpses, backing away from the carnage before her. She couldn't believe this was happening, not again. She had seen this once before and hoped to not see it again. Neo noticed Emma's reaction and grabbed her left arm. As if coming out of a trance, Emma abruptly turned towards the shorter girl.

"Emma, calm down. I know it's a horrible sight, but we have to keep moving. We have to follow Abaddon," Neo said.

Emma took a while to register what Neo said, but soon shook herself out of her trance. Cinder stepped over the bodies, avoiding any kind of contact with them.

"Come on everyone. There's no stopping Abaddon now, so we might as well catch up with him. It was a bad coincidence that the White Fang would be here. But we have to keep moving," Cinder said with a confident tone, beckoning the others to follow, which they did.

As they ran through the factory, Kathleen positioned herself next Cinder. "Did Abaddon really kill them?"

Cinder was hesitant to answer but nodded anyway. She andd Abaddon had agreed to keep their friends out of this, but with his disregard to control himself it was too late. "He has little to no mercy for them, except for those who are unfortunate like those two he rescued a while ago."

"You know about that?" Kathleen asked.

"Mhmm," Cinder said. "He told me about it. There were other White Fang in that squad with them. He killed those soldiers as well."

Kathleen wore a face of deep concern. To think her partner would commit such a thing was indeed troubling, but at least he had some sense. If he killed some of the White Fang rescuing Remora and Klyde, how was he able to come to school acting like nothing happened? Like taking another's life was normal?

"This guy's a maniac," Emerald blurted out.

"Shut up! No he's not!" Emma yelled at Emerald. "He's just..."

"Bickering won't help right now," Cinder said as they passed more bodies littering the pathways.

Cinder wouldn't mind any of this, and knew Neo would neither. The only complication was that their teammates were here and they weren't used to seeing this. To seeing death with their own eyes. Cinder and Neo had seen about three years' worth of it. _"He'll probably be heading straight for Corvus. I know damn well those two will want to duel again."_


	13. Chapter 13

_Ch. 13_

"Hey, pick up the pace! We're almost there!" yelled Lieutenant Corvus. The White Fang soldiers under his command continued to dig through the massive hole they made in floor of the factory's supply basement. Its wide open space and high ceiling allowed them to bring in digging equipment, such as large drilling machines, into the building. Although, the stone pillars did provide a bit of a hindrance.

The White Fang had secured the building over a week ago, and Corvus was put in charge. His mission was to obtain a Longinus fragment and bring it to Adam for safekeeping. Seemed easy enough to him since there was no one around these parts of Vale anyway. The fact that the building was surrounded by a strong, thick steel wall was a bonus as they didn't have to worry about Grimm breaking in and interfering.

"Getting closer!" The drills continued to dig further, their movements causing the lights overhead to shake. Corvus was still surprised the power was still operational. All he had to do was turn on the circuit breaker in the factory's engineering room. Still, the place was messy, dusty, and crawling with bugs and rats. It wasn't pleasant, but he dealt with it anyway.

The drills continued to dig until a portion of the hole collapsed into a medium sized cave.

"Hold it men!" Corvus commanded.

The drills halted and the operators made the massive grey machines back away from the opening. Corvus and a small armed group approached the cave. He pulled a small device from his pocket, it was similar to a scroll but only had one function: to detect energy. The device had a red blip on its screen and started beeping as soon as he entered the cave.

"Stay here," he commanded his soldiers.

They nodded and formed a perimeter around the cave mouth while Corvus entered with a flashlight in hand. As much as he respected his fellow faunus brethren, he didn't want them near the Longinus fragment. The information he was given about its properties made want to exercise extreme caution. The beeping of the energy device grew in pace as he traversed further. A few minutes later he found an opening into a small circular room. In the middle was rock pedestal, and on top of it was a glowing crystal. Corvus put away his flashlight and approached the pedestal. The crystal was shaped like a regular dust crystal, but a little larger and colored black and white. In fact, the colors seemed to move around the inside of crystal like liquid. Corvus slowly grabbed the crystal in his hands. As soon as he grabbed it, he felt both a cold and warmth spread through his hand, like it was trying to spread its contents through his body. Corvus, remembering what Adam told him, steeled himself. The cold and warmth immediately retreated from his hand, only to be felt from the surface.

"That was close. I could've lost it right then and there," Corvus said with a sigh of relief.

He pocketed the crystal and turned his flashlight back on, proceeding to exit the cave. When he exited the cave mouth, one of his soldiers quickly ran up to him.

"Sir, I've got bad news. You should come check the security cameras," the soldier said.

Corvus merely nodded and followed the soldier up a ladder out of the hole to the main Atrium floor. They walked to into the security room, shutting the door behind them. They approached a large table that was stuck into the wall opposite the door. It had several computer screens spanning the wall above it with a control module to rewind, fast forward, pause, and change position of the cameras. Some of the screens were blank since not all the cameras worked, but one in particular caught Corvus' attention. The camera in the upper right hand corner showed a group of seven people running down the many hallways of the complex.

"Huntsmen? Here?" Corvus said, somewhat agitated. How the hell had huntsmen found this place?

"That's not all sir," the White Fang soldier said. He pointed to another screen just two spaces to the left. It showed a boy standing among a throng of four dead bodies. He was currently holding a struggling White Fang in his outstretched right hand. "That wolf has already killed most of our men and seems to be heading towards us."

Corvus ground his teeth in anger as the sight left a bad taste in his mouth. "Tell everyone to get ready for company. And don't hesitate to kill them, Understood?" The sharp edge to Corvus' voice shot a small pang of fear in his subordinate.

"Y-Yes sir," the soldier said before readying his rifle and running out of the room.

Corvus picked up his own weapon, a modified chainsaw, and walked out the room to get his men prepared for the worst.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

Abaddon threw the dead White Fang soldier to the floor. It was a futile effort, trying to stab him in the back. Abaddon promptly grabbed and strangled the fighter before he could so much as touch him with a weapon.

The boy continued his trek through the building, heading towards the basement. He could quite literally feel the power of a Longinus fragment emanating from down there. He surmised that the White Fang may have been here for a while. They were either gathering dust again or, if they knew it was here, trying to get the fragment as well. Abaddon also noticed that no more White Fang appeared to get in his way.

" _This is either a good thing, or I'm heading into a trap_ ," he thought.

He ran down a hallway and descended one more flight of stairs until he came to a double door. The words _"Storage Basement"_ were displayed over them. Abaddon went through the doors, only to be met with the sight of a small army of angry and armed White Fang, including a familiar face.

"Surprised to see me again Corvus?" Abaddon asked with a smirk.

"I knew you'd reappear, but how did you find this place?" Corvus demanded more than asked.

"I don't know, just dumb luck I guess." Abaddon didn't need to count how many soldiers surrounded him, they were going down anyway. "But enough talk," he said as he brandished his swords. "Let's fight!"

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

Kathleen and the others continued their desperate attempt to catch up to Abaddon. He must've been running on all fours to be so far ahead. They sprinted down hallways and flights of stairs, following their teammate's path of destruction, but with every dead body they came across, team KAJE only grew even more wary. Why was their leader acting this way?

As they passed the last of the bodies, they continued downstairs. Apparently the trail led towards the basement. They stopped at a pair of double doors that led there.

"Alright, he should be in here," Cinder said as she pushed the doors open.

They entered and found five bodies on the floor, each sliced nearly in half. They were surrounding by an army of White Fang, who were currently watching a battle between Abaddon and a White Fang soldier wielding a chainsaw weapon.

"I have to admit, you've improved a bit Corvus," Abaddon grunted as he parred a blow from his opponent.

"I had to. I don't plan on losing to you again!" Corvus screamed as he revved up his chainsaw.

They clashed, the conflict between their weapons causing sparks to fly all over them.

"Abby!" Emma screamed for her brother.

Emma's voice attracted everyone's attention.

"Stay back!" Abaddon yelled, but this distracted him long enough for Corvus to slash him, sending the boy back against a stone pillar.

"This is just like before. Wherever you find us, you have other huntsmen to back you up," Corvus said, then turned to his troops. "Take care of those huntsmen! Don't let them interfere!"

" _Like before? What does he mean by that?"_ Kathleen mentally asked herself, her doubts from before increasing even more.

Corvus' soldiers all charged towards Emma and the others with guns drawn, swords out, and clubs at the ready. Team's KAJE and MNCE pulled out their weapons as well. Mercury and Emerald advanced the White Fang with a flurry of kicks, Cinder and Kathleen slashed through with their swords, Emma fought while interchanging between her scythes dual and singular forms, Neo outmaneuvered the enemy and parried their attacks with her umbrella, and Jurano fired his double barreled revolver while wielding his chain scythe.

During the battle, Corvus stayed low, trying to attack one of the huntsmen from behind. He laid his eyes on Emma, who seemed to be the smallest. Circling around, Corvus made sure she didn't see him before he charged through the crowd and lunged at her with his chainsaw.

"DIE!"

But before his weapon could even touch her, Emma teleported behind Corvus and hit him with a rolling vertical slash. Corvus tumbled to the ground, but quickly stood back on his feet. "What the?"

"That's not gonna work on me big guy," Emma said with a glare.

Corvus charged again, his chainsaw revving, his frustrations boiling, but as he sprinted towards Emma a hard fist crashed into the right side of his face. The impact sent Corvus sprawling through the air and into a nearby support pillar, cracking it. His vision blurred momentarily, Corvus stood up once more. He shook his head and his vison cleared to see Abaddon standing between him and Emma.

"Looks like you can take a hard punch and just keep on tickin'." Abaddon cracked his knuckles, adorning a glare that, coupled with his black and red eyes, cast a tiny tinge of fear into Corvus. Although, not enough to make him cower.

"I'll only tell you this once Corvus. Keep your hands off my sister," the boy growled.

" _This isn't going well for me,"_ Corvus thought to himself. He was nearly out of energy, and this guy could literally fight nonstop for several days. Corvus knew he couldn't win against Abaddon, especially with his damn friends present, so he thought of a plan. Something that would buy him some time.

"Come on you filthy traitor! Finish me off! Or are you scared?" Corvus made the 'come at me' gesture, which prompted Abaddon to steadily walk towards him.

" _That's it, just a bit closer."_ Corvus was hoping his plan would work, he just need to be a little patient. When Abaddon was about two feet away from him, Corvus made his move. "White Fang, flash bangs down now!" Corvus swiftly pulled a flashbang from his pocket and threw it at the ground. A few of his soldiers followed his example and threw more flash bangs, blinding the other huntsmen. It was a good thing their masks protected them from being blinded.

"Follow me!" Corvus ran towards the other end of the basement, with what was left of his soldiers in tow. They made it to a stack of crates, which Corvus moved to reveal an underground tunnel.

"Everyone get in!" he commanded.

His soldiers did as they were told and quickly filed in, with Corvus being the last. He pulled the crates back into place, then reached in his pocket and pulled out a handheld detonator.

" _The timer is set to give us about a five minute head start, before even this tunnel collapses. By that time we'll be long gone. Too bad for those huntsmen."_ He looked back towards the opening and, with a smile, activated the switch.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"What the hell was that about?" Jurano exclaimed. The flash bang was like a huge flare from the sun, momentarily disorientating his vision and dulling his senses. After recovering, he looked around at his teammates. It seemed everyone was present, and also recovering from the same experience.

"Everyone alright?" Abaddon asked as he and Emma joined their friends.

Everyone nodded as they regrouped near the large hole the White Fang dug into the floor. Once they were all present, Emma chose this time to swiftly turn around and slap Abaddon across the face, hard. The harsh sound caused the others to flinch.

"Whoa," Emerald said in mild shock.

Mercury nudged Jurano's shoulder. "Uhhhh, remind me not to get slapped by her."

"Noted," Jurano replied.

Emma's slap left a large red mark across her brother's right cheek. Abaddon gazed back at her, but remained silent.

"Why?" Emma asked. "Why did you kill all those faunus Abby?"

"It's nothing to be concerned about," he said, then looked away from her.

"Like hell it is!" Emma whined.

"Abaddon, how can we be a team if you can't trust us with the truth?" Kathleen pleaded.

"She's right Abbs, you can't leave us in the dark any longer," Jurano added.

All three of Abaddon's friends wanted to know what he was thinking. Dishonesty, especially from the team leader, would cripple their effectiveness as a team, not to mention ruin their bond. Cinder and Neo kept quiet. They knew all too well that no matter how much they kept from the others, it wouldn't stay secret for long. Mercury and Emerald stayed silent as well, but were also curious of what Abaddon had to hide. Emerald also gazed at Cinder.

" _Whatever he's hiding, I bet Cinder and Neo know about it too."_

Abaddon sighed, and just as he was about to speak a series of explosions shook the building. Charges placed around the factory, including several support pillars in the basement, went off.

"I'll tell you everything you want to know later. We have to get out of here, now!"


	14. Chapter 14

_Ch. 14_

A beowulf stood amidst the ruins of Mt. Glenn, a city outside the natural barriers of Vale. The lone Grimm had wondered from its pack to look for food. It did not hunger for fruit, vegetation, or smaller animals, for it was a soulless beast. It only hungered for one thing: the destruction of humans and faunus alike. It sniffed the ground for the scent it had picked up earlier, a scent that reeked of life. It had been several hours, but to no avail. Nonetheless, the wolf kept searching. It reached a part of town that it hadn't dared to venture down before. Perhaps there would be a sign of life here? Or maybe it would continue strolling through, its hunger all but insatiable. The beowulf sniffed the ground once more, and its ears perked up. This was the scent of the human the lone Grimm had picked up earlier. And just as it had recognized the smell, the wolf heard noises. It raised its head to better pinpoint where the noise was originating from, but then its cranium exploded, its mask shattering into tiny shards. The Grimm's body fell to the ground, slowly dissolving into smoke.

"I think that's the last of them," Ruby said as she pulled the bolt on her sniper scythe.

Team RWBY had been going through Mt. Glenn for hours now in search of any weird Grimm activity, but failed to find anything. Their guide, Professor Oobleck, had tasked himself with surveying the surroundings while the girls exterminated the various packs of Grimm that they came across.

"Excellent Ms. Rose. Now let us continue this investigation." The energetic professor began leading the huntresses as they continued to walk through the abandoned city.

"Umm, professor. I don't think there are any more Grimm currently in the area, and there hasn't been any strange activity." Yang had been hoping to get a good fight from the Grimm during this mission, maybe a giant ursa or a couple of alphas, but all she got were a couple of lowly beowulf packs. None put up the kind of fight she wanted.

"Ms. Xiao Long, I know this mission has been quite, quite boring, but I can assure you that it is best to keep our eyes and ears open for any surprises," Oobleck chimed as he continued his observations of the area.

Yang looked at the others and simply shrugged before following the professor. But Yang's boredom would quickly come to an end as the wall of the building to her right exploded. A rather large black figure burst through the debris and smacked Yang, sending her across the street and into a wall.

When the smoke cleared, what stood before them looked like something out of a nightmare. The beast looked similar in size to an ursa major but slimmer, bigger, and more humanoid. It had four red eyes with the trademark white Grimm mask, large claws, wolf ears, and was hunched over like a ghoul. Its mouth was filled with sharp teeth and a black smoke lightly emanated from its mouth.

"Blake, check on Yang," Ruby said.

Blake nodded and went towards the hole in the wall that her partner was knocked into.

Weiss held her Myrtenaster in battle position. "What kind of Grimm is that?"

Oobleck pulled out his thermos, took a sip, then elongated it into it's battle staff form. "I've never seen this Grimm on record. It is likely a new, undiscovered breed of Grimm. Tread carefully ladies, we know not what this monstrosity can do, but I can surmise that it won't be an easy fight."

Blake and Yang emerged from the hole, their weapons at the ready. Above all else, Yang looked extremely pissed. Her eyes were glowing red and her hair partially glowing.

"What is that thing?" Blake asked.

"Whatever it is, it's gonna get one hell of beating!" Yang launched herself towards the beast, hitting it square in the face.

The Grimm was thrown back into a wall. Yang charged again, attempting to beat the beast to death, but it stood up and swatted Yang away. Ruby and Blake started firing rounds at the Grimm. The bullets hit, but only served to piss it off. Oobleck aimed his staff at the beast and fired three flaming blasts. The giant fireballs hit the Grimm in its right side, exploding on impact and sending the beast over Ruby's head. It fell down right behind her.

"Eeep!" Ruby jumped back from the body.

Yang had recovered from the attack and joined the others. "Is it dead?" she asked.

To their horror, the Grimm stirred, got back on its feet, and roared. Black smoke spilled from its mouth as it did. The Grimm then started spewing black smoke balls at them. The huntsmen quickly dodged the incoming projectiles. Oobleck looked back as the smoke balls hit the structures behind them. The stone walls and debris began to smoke and burn, the edges looked as if they were melting. It was like acid and fire in one. A direct hit likely won't be fatal, but it would chew at their auras fairly quickly. No telling what it would do to one's body if their aura was depleted.

"Girls. Its best we stay on our toes. Any direct or glancing hits from those attacks could cause great harm. We must defeat this Grimm quickly." Team RWBY nodded at their professor's words.

The Grimm roared once more and lunged at the huntsmen. Everyone leaped out of harm's way, except Yang who blasted the beast's face with a volley of explosive rounds. This didn't really phase the Grimm, and it kept coming. With her semblance enhanced by the Grimm's earlier attacks, Yang fist met the Grimm's face. The impact caused a small shockwave, and the beast's body flailed as the force of Yang's punch coursed through it's body then fell to the ground.

"And that's how you do it." Yang mounted her right foot on the Grimm's head, feeling victorious.

"Hmph. Show off," Weiss huffed.

This feeling did not last as the beast rose once more, grabbing the blonde in one hand. She tried to break free from its grip, but its her arms were tightly pinned to her body.

"Yang!" Ruby fired her sniper rounds again, and again they had little affect. She had to save her sister before she got seriously hurt, or worse.

Weiss dashed in, rotating the cylinder on Myrtenaster and striking the Grimm's free arm. It was now entirely encased in ice. "Ruby!"

Ruby nodded and gazed towards Blake. "Bumblebee!" Both Ruby and Blake dashed towards the Grimm and bombarded it with a dance of blades. They then went for the ice covered arm. Gambol Shroud and Crescent Rose's blades simultaneously struck, slicing the limb off.

"We still need to free Yang," said Blake.

It's attention still on Yang, the Grimm opened its mouth wide and the black smoke from within began to swirl. It turned into a black sphere and continued to grow in size. Yang didn't like what she was seeing and desperately tried to get at least one arm free. She still couldn't move one bit.

Oobleck appeared in between the two and used his staff like a bat to smack the shadow ball down the Grimm's throat. Surprisingly, the Grimm began to convulse as if it was having muscle spasms. It let go of Yang and grabbed its head, screeching in agony. Blake ran over to her partner's side and helped her to safety.

"You okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, a little hurt but fine. That thing has a tight grip," Yang said.

Everyone watched as the Grimm continued to convulse and painfully screech. And in no time at all its body began falling apart until it crumpled to pieces on ground, it's body dissipating into smoke.

"Well, that's done." Ruby wiped a tiny bit of sweat from her brow.

"Peculiar, very peculiar. To think this monstrosity would be vulnerable to the vapor emanating from its own body." Oobleck quickly documented his findings in a notebook he kept in his coat pocket. He put it back once he was done writing. "Girls, we should head back to the city immediately."

The professor was interrupted by a familiar roar. The huntsmen looked down the street at the source: three more of the same Grimm. Everyone readied their weapons for another battle.

Oobleck took a quick swig from his thermos. "Oh boy, this…does not look good."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Why the heck did we have to go back upstairs?" Emerald kept her eyes open for any debris that might fall on her. She was not a fan of the idea of running through a collapsing building.

Abaddon had opted for them go back the way they came and exit the building another way. They sprinted full speed out of the basement and up the staircase to the ground level floor. Abaddon had hoped to find a hole made by one of the explosions. A large breach would make an excellent exit point. Normally, he could've just bashed a hole in the wall, but the foundation was getting weaker by the second so he didn't want to risk the roof caving in on them.

"Look, there's an opening down there." Neo pointed a tiny finger towards a large opening in one of the factory's walls.

"Good eye Neo, lets go!" Abaddon led the way as the group raced down the hall, avoiding any debris that would get in their way. They jumped through the opening, out into the sunlight. The huntsmen were currently in the courtyard of the facility. Their was a loud crash as a portion of the factory, a smoke stack, fell onto the tough concrete wall. The impact created a huge hole in the wall, allowing the Grimm on the other side to enter.

The horde of Grimm immediately set their sights on the huntsmen and advanced. Teams KAJE and MNCE ran towards the wall on right, opposite the enemy. Once at the wall, they turned to face the Grimm. Those with firearms started shooting into the swarm headed their way.

"We've got to get past this damn wall!" Mercury grunted. He kicked at the concrete surface, but only made a small dent.

"There's too many Grimm. With our backs cornered like this we'll be overwhelmed!" Using her semblance over dust, Cinder's dress glowed as fireballs appeared in her hands. She threw them and they hit a trio of beowulves, exploding on impact.

"Emma, can't you teleport us over the wall?" Neo asked.

"Tried something like that before, didn't work very well!" Jurano shouted over the sound of his guns firing.

"He's right, I can't carry a lot of weight when I teleport. It shortens the distance greatly and there's no telling if everyone will be teleported over the wall. I don't one of you ending up in it," Emma explained.

With no options left, Abaddon knew a way out. Although, it would raise a lot of questions from his teammates. He turned to Kathleen and asked, "No more hiding secrets…right?"

"Not the time for that!" Emerald shouted.

Kathleen gazed at her partner. She wasn't sure what he was getting at, but she answered him anyway. "Right."

Abaddon nodded. He turned to the wall, cocking his right fist back for a strike. His dark red aura radiated around him and on top of it darkness began to dance round his arm. Kathleen stopped firing for a moment, eyes wide in curiosity. Abaddon punched the wall, creating a huge crater in its surface. Cracks oozing with shadow began to emanate from the impact zone, breaking the structure from within. The concrete began to give way and soon the wall exploded outward. Everyone except Neo and Cinder looked at the destruction in awe.

"Go!" Abaddon screamed. The others shook themselves out of their stupor and dashed through the exit and into the emerald forest. Abaddon was the last to jump out, almost being caught by a king taijitu's fangs.

"Everyone follow me! Were going back to the clearing we arrived in! I'm going to call for the bullhead!" Kathleen turned on her earpiece. "This is huntsmen teams KAJE and MNCE. We need evac now, there are too many Grimm on our tales!"

The pilot from earlier responded. "Roger. I'll hover over the LZ for your arrival."

It didn't take long to get back to the landing zone. Just as the pilot said, the bullhead hovered about two meters above the ground. Catching sight of the huntsmen, the pilot descended a bit more and opened the cargo doors. Kathleen jumped in first, followed by Jurano, Mercury, Cinder, Neo, and Emma. The pilot checked his controls, but froze when a large shadow flew by. He looked up to see several nevermore circling above and pulled up, causing the ship to ascend.

"Hey wait, we still have one more getting on," Kathleen told the pilot.

"Sorry ma'am," he apologized. "If we don't leave now, those nevermore will tear this bird down!"

Everyone looked down to see Abaddon finally enter the clearing. He held back as they ran, slaying some of the Grimm to give his friends more time. He looked up to see the bullhead slowly ascending.

"Abaddon, don't worry. We'll have Emma teleport you up her!" Kathleen said through his earpiece.

"Don't. If I get on that bullhead, the Grimm will surely bring it down," he said.

"We're not leaving you behind!" Emma screamed.

"Cinder! I have a Longinus fragment on me! Tell the pilot to go while the Grimm are focused on me!" Abaddon didn't want to endanger any of them, he could take care of himself.

"Got it," Cinder replied. "Pilot, lets get out here!"

"Don't have to tell me twice!" The bullhead began to ascend even further. Everyone began taking their seats, except Kathleen. She looked down at her partner. She knew he would fight, but with that massive horde of Grimm coming their way he mine as well be signing his death warrant.

Emma tugged on Kathleen's arm. "Kat, we gotta strap in."

Suddenly the ship lurched. Something hit them from behind. The pilot looked to the left and spotted one of the nevermore coming there way. "Brace for impact!"

The bullhead lurched even more violently this time as the nevermore grazed the underside. Emma fell to the floor, bumping her head on the bottom of one of the seats. Kathleen, on the other hand, fell out of the bullhead.

"No! Kathleen!" Jurano tried to grab her, but she was already out of reach.

On the ground, Abaddon had just stabbed a creep in the head when he heard Jurano yell Kathleen's name. He quickly looked up to see his partner plummeting towards the ground.

"Dammit!" Abaddon put his sword in his mouth and ran on all fours towards her positon. A beowulf leaped in his way, only for it to get beheaded by his blade. He picked up the pace and jumped in the air. A pair of small white wings briefly emanated from his back to give him a gliding boost. Abaddon managed to catch Kathleen in mid air, holding her close as they hit the ground. He positioned himself so they wouldn't roll, but he skidded on the grass about two meters before stopping. His aura only took a small dent from the maneuver.

"You alright Kat?" He asked.

"Yeah, thanks for the save. I couldn't concentrate enough to use my semblance," she replied.

"You guys ok?" Jurano's voice said over the communicator.

Abaddon helped Kathleen up to her feet. "We're good Jurano, but you should really get out of here. Don't want any more of you falling out of the bullhead."

"Alright…we'll send another bullhead for you later. I promise." Jurano's voice was replaced by static as he went out of communication range.

Kathleen and Abaddon looked to the sky to see the ship flying off, back towards Vale.

"So we survive until another bullhead comes for us?" Kathleen asked.

"Sounds about right, but we've still got company." Abaddon pointed to their right, where the Grimm were racing through the forest to get to them. Kathleen unsheathed her rifle swords while Abaddon pulled out all four of his short swords, combining each pair into two long swords.

The crowd was mostly made up of beowulves and ursai, but Kathleen also spotted a deathstalker or two, a king taijitu, and three nevermore over head. She thought about their odds of killing them all, and they were not nice.

"The most we can do is kill the wolves and ursai. As for the others, we'd need both teams to finish them off-" Kathleen stopped when Abaddon slowly walked towards the Grimm horde.

Seeing her partner march towards his death, she slightly panicked. "Abaddon what are you doing?!"

"I want you to take care of any lesser Grimm that make it past me. Don't worry about the larger ones, their mine." Abaddon's black swords began to resonate with energy, the right shining with white light and the left submerged in black shadow.

"Abaddon?" Kathleen didn't know what she was seeing. It looked like he had three auras, but no human or faunus is supposed to be capable of that. And yet here he was, his natural dark red aura surrounding his body mixed with a warm, light aura and a cold, dark one.

It had been a while since Abaddon used his twilight power. He hoped he wasn't rusty in its use, which he had to make sure to limit or it would be costly on his aura. He charged towards the incoming enemy, straight into the horde and began hacking and slashing at their numbers. Beowulves and ursai fell at the relentless assault of his blades. Their attempts at harming him were to no avail as his semblance protected him. Abaddon didn't bother to finish all the small fry, leaving Kathleen to take care of them. He went straight for the two deathstalkers, jumping into the air and slashing straight through one of the scorpions' tails. The injured deathstalker screeched in pain as it's twin turned its stinger towards Abaddon and lashed out. A giant shadow hand came out of Abaddon's back to grab the stinger and used the tail to toss the beast to the side. It knocked over several other Grimm as it crashed on the ground.

Abaddon relished the battle, but his main concern was his partner. She had to come first.

"Kathleen, how're you holding u-," Abaddon was interrupted when a large claw smacked him across the back, knocking the boy harshly to the ground.

He stood back up to face the previously injured deathstalker. "That's it, you die first!"

The deathstalker hissed at him, as if in disagreement, and tried to snap at Abaddon again. The faunus vertically slashed the air with his white sword, causing a wave of light to fly through the Grimm. The giant scorpion froze for a second before its body collapsed in two. Abaddon then went for the other deathstalker. He rushed towards it and dodge rolled just as it tried to swipe at him. Abaddon managed to get close to its armored face and stabbed his shadow blade halfway through. The Grimm's body momentarily jolted as several large black spikes erupted from several places in its body, killing it. Abaddon pulled out his blade as the Grimm began to disintegrate.

Meanwhile, Kathleen held her own against the lesser Grimm pretty well. Using her wind semblance in small bursts, she quickly raced through the battlefield, her dual swords leaving dead Grimm in her wake. When an Alpha beowulf joined the fray, Kathleen shot out one of its unarmored knees. The Alpha knelt to the ground. It slashed at her with its left arm, but that appendage was severed in a flash. Flying to its rear, Kathleen stabbed it through the stomach with one sword, using her free hand to blast a sneaky beowulf in the face. She then aimed that free hand at the Alpha's throat and began firing. It died after 5 shots. Kathleen pulled her blades out of the Grimm's body.

She counted three ursai, an ursa major, and two beowulves left. She then checked her Aura using her scroll, it was close to half way empty. That was more than enough to take care of these Grimm. Although, what distracted her was Abaddon. She had seen his battle with the deathstalkers, and she really didn't know what to think of it. Did he have this power the whole time? He can't have, or else he would've used it before when they were on Marrowshin. Does this have anything to do with his three year absence? And if so, why hide it from them, his closest friends? Kathleen remembered what he said: no more hiding secrets..right?

After this, she would be sure to hold him to that.

As the three ursai and two beowulves began to close in, Kathleen held her swords together and a clockwork mechanism inside sprung to life. The blades of both swords combined into one dual edged nodachi blade, the rifle barrels moved to either side of the blade, and the sword hilts merged into an elongated one for two handed gripping. She slashed through the beowulves in one strike, then speared through one ursa's throat, beheaded the second, and shot the last one in the face. Although, Kathleen was immediately hit in the back. She stumbled, but recovered into a defensive stance, holding her nodachi blade over her head. Both of them stood still, as if waiting for the other to move a muscle. Several seconds passed. Then, the Grimm jumped forward on its hind legs. As if it was fully on instinct, Kathleen thrust her sword forward in one swift motion. Channeling her semblance into that thrust, Kathleen sent a fast spear of wind into the ursa major. This attack blasted a small hole through where the Grimm's heart would be.

"Rrrr?" The ursa looked at its chest, then looked at Kathleen, and finally fell on its back dead.

The huntress lowered her weapon and returned it to its dual form. _"Phew. I wanted to aim for its head, but that technique is hard to aim and it takes a significant amount of my aura."_ Kathleen sheathed her blades and rushed in the direction where she last saw Abaddon fighting. She could tell that she was on the right track since the smoking bodies of the Grimm he killed littered the ground, including the two deathstalkers.

Kathleen finally made it to a clearing. At least, that's what you could call it since a large number of trees in the area were cut down. The Grimm were laying in piles, mainly beowulves and ursa, but there were also a few dead alphas, majors, three medium sized nevermore, and a king taijitu with one head busted open and the other brutally torn off. Then there, in the middle of the destruction, was Abaddon. He held a struggling beowulf by the neck, then snapped it and dropped it on the ground.

"Finally, that's the last of 'em," he said to himself.

It wasn't much of problem taking on a horde. At least they didn't attract _every_ Grimm in the vast emerald forest, or he'd be in trouble. Abaddon heard footsteps coming up behind him and turned with his fist raised. He lowered his fist when he saw it was Kathleen walking towards him.

"Oh good, I knew you'd be alright." Although, Kathleen didn't respond. When she stood in front of him, she had a _very_ serious look on her face with her arms folded.

"Right. You want answers," the boy said sheepishly.

Kathleen nodded. "And no beating around the bush Abaddon."

"Okay, okay." Abaddon looked down, noticing from the suns orange glare that it was close to nightfall. Then he looked around at the small "battlefield" he had created not too long ago. It wasn't an ideal place to be at the moment. "Can we set up camp first? Its getting late and I have a lot to tell you."


	15. Chapter 15

_CH. 15_

The first thing Jurano did when they arrived back at Beacon was go to the headmaster. He had promised Kathleen and Abaddon that they would be back with another pelican, and he was sure that Ozpin's permission was needed first. Although, the headmaster was quite busy at the moment.

"Professor Ozpin is currently unavailable at this time. He is having a personal meeting, but I will make sure to send another Pelican with a full huntsman on board," said Goodwitch.

" _Hopefully his teammates are alright,"_ she thought.

"Can't we help professor?" Jurano pleaded.

Goodwitch shook her head. "No. It's best if you and your friends stay here. We don't want any more students in harm's way. Now go on to your dorm."

"Alright then." Somewhat satisfied, Jurano left Beacon tower and made his way to MNCE's dorm room. He knocked on the door and as soon as it opened, Emma appeared right in front him. Jurano recoiled a bit in surprise.

"What she say?" Emma's hair was partially braided, making it look very unruly. Coupled with her currently wide eyes, Jurano could've made the mistake of thinking that she had lost her mind.

"Good news is Goodwitch is going to send a pelican early tomorrow morning with a full huntsman aboard. Although, we can't tag along. Goodwitch says to stay here so no more students will be endangered," Jurano explained. "We just have to hope for the best."

Emma frowned and returned to her place on Neo's bed, where the tiny girl continued to braid the rest of her hair. Jurano just leaned against the wall, pulled out his scroll and a pair of earphones, and began listening to music.

"Yeah, hope that they can actually survive till tomorrow," Emerald added from her place on her bed.

"Em, please," Mercury pleaded as he laid back on her lap.

"What, didn't you see the size of that horde?" Emerald said. "We were way outnumbered and outmatched. You'd have to be a full on huntsman to take on something like that or else its suicide. And even if those two managed to get away, they'd have to find somewhere to stay in that infested forest. That's why its likely they won't survive."

"Will you stop?" Neo asked without looking away from her braiding.

Emerald sighed. "Fine, whatever."

"Its nothing to really be concerned about anyway. Kathleen's a strong girl, and Abaddon's a force to be reckoned with. I'm sure they'll be fine," Cinder said. She had been reading from the book she bought at the bookstore. She had wanted some piece and quiet, but couldn't help but add something to the conversation.

"By the way, what do you think that was? When he destroyed that concrete wall?" Mercury asked. "There was some kind of shadow stuff coursing through the cracks."

Emma shook her head. "Jurano, Kathleen, and I have known him since we were little kids, but we never knew he had power like that. It makes me wonder what else we don't know about him?"

"Maybe Cinder knows," Emerald said accusingly.

"Hmm. I do, but Abaddon will tell you everything when he gets back," Cinder replied.

Emerald was about to say something when there was a knock at the door. Jurano took off his headphones and opened the door to see Velvet standing there with a bandaged right arm.

"Velvet, I was just about to call you!" Jurano hugged her, then his eyes fell on her injury. "What happened to your arm?" He took her arm into his hands, careful not hurt her even further.

Velvet smiled. "Jurano, I'm fine. Just a minor break. My aura should heal it soon enough, but you should come with me. Ruby's team arrived about the same time we did, but something's happened."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"I think that's enough firewood for now." Abaddon put down the wood he had gathered for the makeshift campfire. After taking care of the Grimm horde, he and Kathleen found a safe place to camp. It was a small forested outlet sticking out of a cliff face. The height would keep them away from most Grimm if more ever came. Although, the height did allow the autumn wind to go through, making the air rather cold. Kathleen kept the fire stable, but the wind still sent a chill up her spine.

" _Dammit, I should've brought a coat or something,"_ she thought as she shivered.

Abaddon noticed this and took off his hoody. He came up behind Kathleen and put it on her. She noticed how much bigger in size Abaddon was, but the extra space helped to keep her warm. Abaddon sat on the ground next to her.

"Thanks," she said. "What about you?"

"I'll be fine. The light keeps me warm." Just as he said that, a faint white aura briefly surrounded his body. "Look Kat, I can't tell you everything until the entire group is present. They deserve to know too. For now, I'll answer a few of your questions…ok?"

"Alright," Kathleen sat up straight and looked at him. "What is a Longinus fragment?"

Abaddon sighed and took a crystal out of his pocket. It was like a dust crystal, but much larger, and instead of the regular colors that dust usually takes, this one was both black and white. It was as if the elements inside were continuously mixing and swirling together. "This is a Longinus fragment. Turns out these things have been on Remnant since humanity discovered dust, at least that's what researchers say. Each fragment carries both light and darkness within. No one has been able to use these fragments safely, without going insane, deforming, and/or dying that is."

"That power you've been using, is it from the fragments?" Kathleen asked.

"Yes," he answered. "Of all those who have tried to gain power from them, I'm the only one who has been able to harness both the darkness and the light, which is also dubbed twilight. It is a strong power indeed, helps me to kill large amounts of Grimm easily and overwhelm my opponents. Although, it takes a large amount of my aura to use it so I try to conserve it. Here, I'll show you what happens when I absorb one."

Abaddon held his arm out and closed his eyes, with the Longinus fragment in hand. The crystal began to glow faintly, rising a few inches above his hand. In response, Abaddon's aura glowed, his crimson red mixed with shadow and light. The crystal then floated towards Abaddon's chest, glowing brighter until it phased into his body and disappeared. His aura continued to glow for a few seconds, then went back to normal.

"Wow," she said.

"Anymore questions?" he asked.

"Yeah. Are Cinder and Neo really from Marrowshin like we are?" Kathleen asked.

"No," Abaddon answered reluctantly. Talking about Neo was fine with him, but he hoped that he wouldn't have to explain the relationship he had with Cinder. It brought both good and bad memories. "Neo is from Mistral, where she lived with her foster father. Cinder is from Atlas, where her family lives. Cinder joined me when I went on a mission with the Atlesian military, and Neo tagged along after we saved her father from a corrupt huntsman that he ripped off in a bargain."

"Oh, ok. Also, one more thing. What is the real reason you left Marrowshin?" She was hoping to get a real answer this time. In the past, he would make up excuses about it being an adventure or that his grandfather told him to, but she and the others knew that was a lie.

"I left because I wanted revenge…on the White Fang…for what they did to our town," Abaddon said.

"And you couldn't tell us about this? We could've gone as a team ya'know," Kathleen said.

Abaddon shook his head. "I couldn't take the risk. I wanted to go alone so no one I cared about would get hurt."

"Bullshit! You had Cinder and Neo with you for those three years! You went off with two random people besides your closest friends, us! Was it better to have them with you than us?!" she screamed. Kathleen was fuming with anger. What Abaddon was telling her was like another way of saying that he couldn't trust them with such a mission. It was frustrating, and hurtful.

Anger began to well up in Abaddon's chest as well. His eyes turned black and he couldn't help but to yell back at his partner. "I know that, but you guys were more important to me! I realized later on that I couldn't do it alone, so I let them stay with me! I didn't call or mail or anything because I didn't want any of you coming to my aid and getting harmed, or worse, killed! I wouldn't be able to live with myself if any of that happened! My parents didn't even know until I came back, only grandpa knew the whole time! I know I was being selfish, but it was my decision! My burden!"

"Uuugghhh!" Without hesitation, Kathleen flew towards Abaddon in a quick gust of wind. Abaddon braced himself, ready for impact.

 _SMACK!_

Abaddon's cheek went bright red. Then, she hugged him.

Frankly, he was surprised. Of all things he thought Kathleen would've done; a punch, a kick, or a near fatal wind blast. Of all those things, she gave him a slap and a hug. Abaddon hugged her back since he didn't know what else to do.

"You should've at least told us from the beginning. We were all worried about you, whether you would come back or not, whether you were alive or not. But now we're an official team, so you don't have to hide things to protect us ok."

The boy paused for minute before speaking. "Okay." He gave a loud sigh of relief, seeing as the situation went better than expected. "Well, at least you didn't bash my face in."

Kathleen gave him a soft punch to stomach. "Shut up, I'm still mad at you."

Abaddon smiled. "Hehe, how about you get some sleep while I keep watch. Even though we killed those Grimm, there still might be more in the area."

"Alright," Kathleen let go of Abaddon and lay down near the fire. She took one last look at Abaddon before falling asleep.

" _Phew,"_ he thought. " _If I'm honest with myself, it feels like I just lifted a huge weight off my shoulders._ "

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

Kathleen awoke to see the sun shining overhead. It was close to noon. She sat up, yawned, and stretched her limbs. The sleep wasn't very comfortable but having Abaddon's hoodie and being near the fire helped greatly. The fire had already gone out, but that was alright since it wasn't cold during the daylight hours. She looked around for Abaddon and found him lying on the other side of the dead fire, fast asleep.

" _He probably fell asleep when the sun came up,_ " she thought.

Kathleen walked to edge of the cliff outlet and sat down, her legs dangling over the edge. She had a beautiful view of the Emerald forest. Even though the area was dangerous due to the creatures of Grimm, she couldn't help but admit that when all was quiet and peaceful the forest still had its beauty.

"Sightseeing already?" Abaddon sat right next to her, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Kinda," she replied. Then she remembered something. "Hey, shouldn't a bullhead be looking for us by now?" Kathleen took out her scroll and her earpiece. Originally, their earpieces gave off signals that could be seen by nearby scrolls when activated. The devices could also serve as radio transmitters that could be used to link to radio channels that were within range, and connected with one's scroll in order to send out a distress signal for transport vehicles to see. Kathleen connected the two, probing for any radio chatter. After a few minutes, the voice of a bullhead pilot could be heard.

" _Come in, this is Beacon Bullhead number 5. Any stranded huntsmen in training out here please respond. I repeat, please respond."_

"Found our rescue transport," Kathleen told Abaddon.

Abaddon yawned loudly. "That's great. Could you ask the pilot if he or she has any food? We don't have our packs with us and I'm starving."

"You wanna think about food at a time like this?" Then a growling noise filled the air. Kathleen lightly clutched her stomach. "Never mind what I asked."

"That's what happens when you leave your backpack in the bullhead," Abaddon said.

"What about yours?" she asked.

"One of the Grimm attacked me from behind and it was torn to shreds," he replied. "But I have a better excuse though."

Ignoring Abaddon, Kathleen went back to her scroll and pressed on the screen to connect to the radio channel of the nearby bullhead. "Beacon Bullhead, we need some assistance here please. Follow my distress signal and pick us up."

" _Hear you loud and clear. We're actually a few minutes away from you. Just hold tight."_

"Thanks." Kathleen then turned off her earpiece and tucked it away in her pocket. "They'll be here in a few minutes." She thought her partner would happily respond to that good news, but instead he was looking down at his hands. There were a large number of black wisps swirling around him, like a group of sharks swirling around their prey.

"Don't worry Kat, it's nothing." The wisps then quickly flew into his body, one by one. "Maybe those came from some shards that broke off the fragment."

To Kathleen, this was out of the ordinary. He said that he was the only person to actually control this power, but the question was how. If others suffered trying to use these Longinus fragments, what makes Abaddon so different?

"Hello down there!"

Both Abaddon and Kathleen looked up. A bullhead slowly glided down to hover right in front of the pair. The cargo door opened to reveal none other than Professor Port armed with his weapon, a blunderbuss with two axe blades attached to either side of the stock.

"Ms. Silenyaa! Mr. Rizer! It's good to see that you two are safe," said Port.

"Good to see that weapon finally off its perch," Abaddon joked.

"Hahaha, and a marvelous tool it is, but we must make haste back to the school. Get in," Port beckoned.

Kathleen and Abaddon quickly jumped into the bullhead. As the cargo doors closed, everyone took their seats and the bullhead took off towards Beacon.

"The good news is you two were the only students in need of rescue," Port said.

"You sure no one needed an extra hand, not even team CRDN?" Kathleen asked.

"Not at all, although I did hear that one of Mr. Winchester's teammates relieved himself when confronted by an Ursa Major. It was a mess that I'd rather not deal with," Port told her. Kathleen couldn't help but giggle at that.

"Wait," Abaddon interjected. "Sorry to dampen the mood, but what's the bad news?"

"What?" Kathleen asked, confused.

"Sometimes with good news comes bad news. Professor Port, has anything bad happened?" Abaddon asked. He had a gut feeling that something went awry with another team's assigned mission. He was hoping that feeling was wrong.

Port's eyebrows furrowed. "It seems that in an altercation with the creatures of Grimm, the leader of team RWBY was gravely injured. And we don't know if she'll pull through."


	16. Chapter 16

_CH. 16_

"Hey, how is she?" Blake had just walked into the infirmary for the first time since they arrived back at Beacon from Mt. Glenn. They had to return early since Ruby had taken a blow from the unknown Grimm that was meant for her sister. It wasn't fatal…at first, but it wasn't pretty either. Now, Ruby was lying in her hospital still unconscious.

"I don't know," said Yang somberly. She was also injured, sporting a cast for her broken right arm.

After the doctor was done keeping Ruby stable, Yang was allowed in the room and refused to leave her little sisters' side all night. Others like teams KAJE, MNCE, and CFVY came to visit to give their support as well. Now Yang was still beside Ruby in a chair next to the bed with her head laying on the blankets.

"Oh." Blake stood next to Yang and took a good look at Ruby. She had taken a direct hit from one of the Grimm's shadow balls, and it scarred her pretty badly since her aura was low at the time. Her body was darkened on the right side of her face, right arm, and torso. Her breathing was only a little ragged. "Did the doctor or nurses tell you anything?"

Yang nodded. "Yeah, they said that this was something that they've never seen before. The doctor tried several treatments, but none of them worked. Not even a little. What's more, her aura isn't helping to heal her. It's still dangerously low. They said if a solution is not found quickly, then she could…"

Blake didn't really know what to say at first. She wanted to help Yang, to encourage her, but she wasn't very good at things like this. "Don't worry Yang. Ruby's a strong girl, and our leader. We should have faith in her, that she can make it…She _will_ make it."

Yang looked up at her partner with a weak smile. "Thanks Blake, that means a lot," she said. She then stood up and fixed her cast. "Let's go to the lunch room. I haven't eaten at all since we got back."

Blake nodded. Yang gave Ruby one quick kiss on her head before they left. Then, both huntresses walked out of the infirmary door and towards the cafeteria. Once they were there, they bought their lunches and sat at the table where their friends were waiting.

"Hey guys," Yang said.

"Hey. You doin okay?" Mercury asked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'm more concerned about Ruby though," she answered.

"Her condition hasn't changed?" Pyrrha asked.

"I'm afraid not," Blake answered

"I tried to get ahold of another doctor from Atlas, one of the best. He was unavailable though," Weiss said.

"Well shit," Jurano said in frustration. He picked an apple off his plate and threw it in a random direction. He wasn't aiming for anyone, but the apple did bounce off of Cardin's head.

"Hey!" Cardin yelled.

"Chill out dumbass, it was an accident!" Jurano yelled back.

"Hey, aren't two of your teammates still missing?" Ren asked.

"What?! Who?!" Nora exclaimed. "No one tells me these things!"

"Kathleen and Abaddon. Professor Goodwitch should've sent a bullhead to rescue them by now," Emma said.

"She must've done that earlier than you think." Neo pointed towards one of the cafeteria entrances. Everyone looked in that direction and standing there was both Abaddon and Kathleen.

"Yo Abaddon!" Jurano stood up and waved for his friends.

Abaddon caught sight of the boy and he and Kathleen rushed towards them.

"Abby! Kat!" Emma rushed over and hugged both of them as soon as they joined the table.

"Did you miss us that much?" Kathleen asked, somewhat surprised.

"Don't make us worry like that dude," Jurano said, giving Abaddon a fist pump.

"No promises," Abaddon replied with a smirk. He then turned serious and looked towards team RWBY. "Yang, Weiss, Blake, we heard about what happened. Where is Ruby?"

"She's in the infirmary right now," Weiss said.

"Come with me, all of you," Abaddon said, then walked off towards the exit.

"What's he planning to do?" Emma asked.

"Maybe he wants to show us something. Come on." Kathleen followed Abaddon with her teammates and RWBY in tow.

"Come on guys, we're going too," Jaune said.

The huntsmen in training followed Abaddon to the infirmary and into Ruby's infirmary room. When Abaddon saw the state she was in, his brow furrowed. He gently ran his hand over the darkened side of her face.

"Do you have a plan or something?" Yang asked.

"Yes. Ruby's will to live is much stronger than I thought. She's survived longer than several others that I've seen in her condition," Abaddon explained. He held out his hand and a glowing white orb appeared, hovering over his palm. "Luckily, I can help her."

Weiss gasped. "Wait, what is-"

Before she could finish, Abaddon pushed the sphere into Ruby's chest. It slowly sank into her body, seemingly combining with her being.

Yang rushed at Abaddon and pushed him aside. She looked at Ruby, then back at him. "What did you do?" she asked, her eyes turning red.

"Calm down Yang. She was stained by darkness and had at most a few hours left to live. It was eating at her aura. I simply cured her," Abaddon told her.

"Yang..?" At the sound of her name, Yang turned to see Ruby with her eyes slowly opening. The darkened areas began to rapidly fade from her body to everyone's astonishment.

"Wow," Jaune whispered.

"Oh my," Pyrrha gasped.

"Ruby!" Yang grabbed her sister into a tight bear hug. "I'm so glad your ok."

"Yang! I can't breathe!" Ruby gasped.

The blonde let go of her sister, allowing the younger girl to breathe again. "Oh, sorry."

"Ruby, do you…feel any different?" Weiss asked.

"No. I remember my entire body being in pain because of that attack from that weird Grimm but now I just feel like…me. What's going on?" Ruby asked.

"Abaddon just healed you with some white orb," Blake said. "He pushed it into your chest and your injuries faded away."

Ruby's eyes widened in surprise. She put her hands on her chest to check for anything weird or out of place, then looked at Abaddon.

"You're welcome," he said, rustling her hair.

"Abby, how did you do that?" Emma asked.

"Oh, right. I've still got some explaining to do." He looked around the room at his friends. "And now there's more witnesses."

"Maybe it's better if we go to a private place first before you start talking," Kathleen suggested.

"Good idea. Ruby, you should be able to walk now. If not, Yang will have to carry you," Abaddon said as he started walking out of the room. "Come on guys."

Most of the group was hesitant at first, but with their curiosity spiked as it is they followed him. Ruby was able to walk and followed everyone with Yang by her side. It took a while, but Abaddon managed to find an empty classroom. He had everyone get in and take a seat, then locked the door behind him.

"Yayyyy, story time!" Nora exclaimed.

"Alright. Now I should start at the beginning," Abaddon said. He sat on the teacher's desk in the front of the classroom. "Emma, come down here with me."

Emma left her seat and went sit next to her brother. "Why do I have to sit here?"

"Because whenever someone mentions the incident we had several years ago, you get uncomfortable. So I wanted you next to me to keep an eye on you," he explained.

"Oh, it'll be ok. I can handle it. I am 17 after all," she said.

"And yet you still act as innocent and childish as Ruby," Abaddon joked.

"Hey!" Both Ruby and Emma yelled in unison.

"Whatever. Hey Yang, do you by chance remember, six years ago, when the people of Marrowshin were evacuated to Patch for a short period of time?" he asked.

"Yeah," Yang answered. "They said the White Fang came and burned their homes to the ground. Huntsmen on Marrowshin and Patch participated in the effort to get everyone to safety, including our parents. Ruby was scared that they would get caught in the fires over there."

"I'll tell you what exactly happened," said Abaddon.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

 _Six years ago..._

"Come on grandson. I know you can do better than that!" said Heracles Vesuvius.

"I'll beat you this time grandpa!" said a thirteen year old Abaddon.

Both of them wore simple training clothes. Abaddon had on a dark red shirt with black sweats and was bare foot while Heracles wore a tan t-shirt with grey sweats and hiking boots. Both of them made makeshift holes in the back of their pants for their wolf tails. They had been training in hand to hand combat for three hours straight. While Abaddon had been fighting with everything he had, his grandfather wasn't even breaking a sweat.

"Remember, don't use your semblance," Heracles said.

Abaddon charged at the old man and released a fast spinning kick. Heracles easily blocked it with his right arm and grabbed Abaddon's leg. He tossed the boy away from him, then went back to his previous fight stance. Abaddon landed on his feet and charged again, this time on all fours, and was coming in fast. Heracles was ready for the attack, but suddenly Abaddon rushed in with an unexpected burst of speed. He passed his grandfather's guard and head-butt him in the stomach.

"Nngh!" The impact from the blow pushed Heracles back by three feet.

Abaddon regained his composure for a bit, then slumped to his knees. He was out of energy and out of breath.

"Look grandpa…I pushed you back…by three feet this time. That's…a new record," Abaddon uttered.

"I see. You're getting faster and stronger every time I see you. You have great potential grandson," Heracles said proudly.

"Hey! That's enough training! Why don't you two come in to eat?" said Xahnara. She came out wearing a blue dress with jeans and black sandals. She had been watching their fight for the last hour through the kitchen window while cooking up a meal.

"Alright dear, we're coming," Heracles replied.

He went inside the back door with Abaddon in tow. In the kitchen, Abaddon grabbed a white towel from off a table chair and used it to wipe the sweat off his face. Both Heracles and Abaddon sat opposite each other at the kitchen table.

"I just finished cooking some lunch. You should be starving after three hours of nonstop training," Xahnara said.

"Sure am," Abaddon said.

"Here you go honey." Xahnara placed a plate of peas, corn, mashed potatoes, and a medium sized steak in front of Abaddon. He instantly began eating his meal.

"Don't hurt yourself Dad." Xahnara placed a plate in front of Heracles with the same contents, but the steak was much bigger.

"I only choked on that piece of steak for only a few seconds because I was distracted. I'm not _that_ old ya'know," Heracles grunted.

"Hahaha, whatever you say old man," Xahnara laughed. "Now eat your food."

Heracles was about to start when a beeping sound came from his pocket. He pulled out his scroll and started reading the message he had just received. Once done, he stood up from the table and put his scroll away.

"Something wrong?" Xahnara asked.

"Yes," he grunted in an annoyed tone. "I'm being summoned for a board meeting along with Ironwood. That damn Jacque Schnee wants to talk about something, probably unimportant but if we ignore it then he's going to keep pestering us." The old man went into the cabinet and found a plastic container. He put his food in it and picked up a brown jacket from the kitchen counter. "Well, I'd best be going. A dropship is waiting to take me to Atlas."

"You come back to visit when you can alright Dad. And thanks for training little Abaddon today, I needed a break." Xahnara gave her father a hug and a small kiss on the cheek.

"See ya later grandpa." Abaddon also gave Heracles a hug.

"You two stay safe. And tell Selmon I said hi," Heracles said as he left out the back door.

After that, Abaddon went back to his seat to eat the rest of his food while Xahnara put Heracles' plate in the sink. Abaddon finished his plate in just a few minutes and put it in the sink as well.

"Mom, I'm going out to see Emma and the others," he told her.

"Ok. Be back before dark. I don't wanna have to go looking for you like last time. And watch out for any beowulves," Xahnara replied.

"Yes ma'am." Abaddon quickly went outside through the front door and ran off towards Emma's house. He followed a well used trail through the woods into the main part of town. Running eastward, he caught sight of a two story house with a tall tree next to it that reached up to the second floor balcony. Sitting on the front porch were three kids: one was a boy with short green hair, a green shirt, burgundy capris, and red shoes, another was a girl with mid length purple hair, a black blouse, purple skirt, and grey shoes, and the last person was a little girl with short magenta hair, a blue green short sleeve hoodie, light brown shorts, and brown shoes. All three of them looked up when they saw Abaddon coming.

"Abby, why're you so late?" Emma said as Abaddon approached them.

"Didn't training end like an hour ago?" Jurano asked.

"Yeah, me and grandpa lost track of time," Abaddon said. "What do you guys wanna do today anyway?"

"I heard Samuel bought three new horses for his barn. We could go check it out and ask if he would let us ride them," Kathleen said.

"Yayyy, horseback riding," Emma cheered.

"Hehe, sounds like fun. Let's go," Abaddon said.

The four of them walked off into town towards Samuel's farm. It was a cool spring day, so the air was filled with fresh air and the laughter of other children. The group decided to cut through the market first since Samuel liked to go there often. As they walked through, they saw many of the townspeople there, some they knew and others they didn't. Although, a small commotion caught Jurano's eye. Off to their left was a large grey tent with a crowd gathered around it.

"What's going on over there?" Jurano said, thinking out loud.

The other three looked towards the tent as well.

"Don't know, but it wouldn't hurt to check it out," Kathleen added.

"But what about the horses?" Emma whined. She began tugging on Abaddon's shirt to pull him away. "Come on Abby, you and I can just go."

"Hold on Emm. The horses aren't going anywhere. We'll just see what's going on and then leave," he assured.

"Fine, but I'm not letting you out of my sight." Emma held his left hand to show she meant it.

"Whatever you say kitten," Abaddon replied.

The four of them went to the crowd surrounding the entrance of the tent. There were mainly adults there, but some kids were present too. Amongst the crowd, Jurano recognized one of their teachers from school.

"Hey, Mr. Galamor!" Jurano yelled.

One of the people in the crowd, a man with short groomed white hair, glasses, and ram horns, turned and waved at them. He quickly made his way through the crowd to meet with the young ones. He was wearing a black button vest over a dark blue short sleeve button down shirt, brown khakis, and brown shoes. He smiled widely when he walked up to the kids.

"Why hello children. Nice to see you," he said.

"What's with all the commotion Mr. Galamor?" Kathleen asked.

"Oh, this tent is a recruiting station for the White Fang. Many of the people here either want to join or are wondering why the group is here recruiting in the first place," he informed them. "Although, something seems odd. They will only let faunus in."

Abaddon's brow furrowed. "That's strange. The last time the White Fang were here, they were being commanded by a man named Ghira. He aided those who wanted help and allowed anyone to join their cause."

"I remember him. He was a nice man," Emma added.

"Well turns out he's not here this time. There seems to be a red haired young man in his place, and he doesn't seem to like humans very much. He almost pulled his weapon out on a human citizen who tried to get in the entrance," Galamor told them.

"I'm curious," Abaddon said. "You guys should stay here, I'm going in to check it out."

"Are you sure?" Kathleen asked.

Abaddon nodded. "Yep."

"Be careful in there young man," Galamor told him.

Before the boy could take a step, Emma pulled on his shirt again. "I'm coming with you Abby."

"Fine, but no whining please," Abaddon groaned as Emma continued to hold his hand. "And don't leave my side for anything."

They pushed through the crowd, which wasn't an easy task, until they made it to the entrance. The White Fang symbol was painted on the tent to the right of the entrance. Although, instead of the white calm beast's head surrounded by a circle, the head of the symbol was now red and made in a more savage visage with three claw marks behind it. Taking note of this Abaddon attempted to walk into the tent. A White Fang soldier with a red tail immediately stepped in the way and looked down on him. He was wearing black and white clothing and a white mask that could be similar to a Grimm's bone mask.

" _That's weird. Why are they wearing those masks?"_ Abaddon thought. "Excuse me, I need to get in there. You're in the way."

"Beat it, this is no place for stupid kids," the soldier said.

Emma hid behind Abaddon and hissed at the masked man.

"I'd rather go inside where I can't smell that rancid panda breathe of yours. Do all the White Fang not brush their teeth now, or is it just your dumbass," Abaddon retorted.

Emma laughed along with several members of the crowd behind them.

"Why you!" the White Fang soldier was ready to punch Abaddon in the face when a gloved hand grabbed his shoulder.

"That's enough private. Go inside and take a break, I'll deal with this boy," said a voice from inside the tent. Abaddon guessed that that was the voice of the White Fang's soldier's superior.

The soldier looked like he wanted to decline, but put his fist down anyway. "You're lucky kid. I would've turned you inside out," he grumbled as he went inside.

Meanwhile, his superior came out in his place to meet them. He was a tall man with red hair, bull horns, wearing a long sleeved black trench coat that red on the inside, black long pants, black shoes, and black gloves. He also sported a white mask, but unlike his subordinate's plain design, his had flame-like symbols on the front. On his right hip was a sword sheathed in its scabbard.

Emma hid even further behind Abaddon's back at the sight of him. This man scared her. It wasn't just his appearance, there was something sinister about him.

"Who are you? And where's Ghira?" Abaddon asked.

The man knelt in front of Abaddon. "Ghira stepped down from his position in the White Fang. I have taken his place among the leaders. My name is Adam Taurus, and I will lead the White Fang to true revolution."


	17. Chapter 17

_CH. 17_

"True…revolution?" Abaddon repeated.

"Yes. I will deliver the justice that humans rightfully deserve," Adam said with a clenched fist.

"Could you explain to me how?" the boy asked.

"I could, but you must prove yourself to me. I want to see if your skills are as sharp as your tongue," Adam said. "Sean! Get back out here!"

At Adam's command, the same red panda faunus that Abaddon insulted earlier came out of the tent. "Sir?"

"You're one of the youngest of the White Fang, so you should be an ideal opponent for him. I want you to battle this kid, to see what he can do. And use _any_ method you see fit," Adam ordered him.

Sean looked at Abaddon with a smirk of pure delight and cracked his knuckles. "With pleasure." He grabbed his weapon from behind his back, a plain metal scimitar. "Everyone get back. I don't want any interference whatsoever."

The people in the crowd stepped back just as instructed. They made enough space for a small "ring" for him and Abaddon to fight in.

"Here kid, hope you like swords," Sean said, tossing a plain double-edged sword to Abaddon. Abaddon caught the weapon by the hilt in his right hand.

"Abby…," Emma whimpered.

"I'll be alright. This will just be extra training for me. Go stand with the crowd where you'll be safe and out of the way," he told her.

"Okay. Be careful." Emma scurried out of the way and into the throng of onlookers, but she stayed near the front so she could see the fight clearly.

"You really wanna do this?" Abaddon asked Jean.

"No doubt about it kid," Sean replied. "Lets get down to business."

Sean attacked first with a slashing dash. Abaddon parried with his blade and struck back with a jab. Sean dodged, narrowly getting cut in his left shoulder. He attempted to elbow bash Abaddon's nose, but the boy caught Sean's elbow and quickly punched the red panda faunus in the face. Jean recoiled from the hit. He jumped back to put some distance between them.

Abaddon smirked. "Come on, don't you wanna teach me a lesson?"

"Rrghh!" Sean clenched his sword handle tightly and attacked again. As the fight continued, Emma and the other townspeople continued to watch.

"Emma," said a voice from behind her. "What's going on?"

Kathleen joined Emma at the front of the crowd with Jurano coming right behind her. They had been standing in the rear, talking to Mr. Galamor while waiting for Abaddon and Emma to come back. Although, Mr. Galamor left and Kathleen decided to check on them. She could say she was worried, but truthfully she was just feeling somewhat impatient.

Emma frowned. "Abby is-."

"So Abb's in another tussle huh. I'm not surprised," Jurano said.

"He'd better finish it quick," Kathleen said. "The commotion from all these people is giving me a headache."

In the ring, Abaddon was mainly on the defensive. He parried or dodged Sean's attack while choosing when to counterattack accordingly at any openings he saw. Truthfully, Abaddon didn't feel like being serious. This was like any other normal fight he'd been in, some older kid always wants to put him in his place. His grandfather had taught him to never underestimate his opponent, but if the fight wasn't worth it then Abaddon wouldn't really care to try.

He back flipped, dodging another slash from Sean's blade.

"Damn coward, why do you keep toying with me? Stop running around and fight like a man!" Sean heaved.

"I'm not a coward, I'm just showing you what I'm capable of. Isn't that what you and Adam wanted?" Abaddon teased.

" _This kid is playing with me! I can't let him win just by wearing me down! I gotta think of somethin' to give me an edge."_ Sean looked at the crowd behind Abaddon and saw the little cat faunus that the boy had shown up with. He quickly came up with a plan that could possibly work to his advantage. He held his scimitar in front of him and ran forward. Abaddon flipped over him, but then he quickly turned when a small scream came from behind him.

"Abby!"

Sean had one arm around Emma like a hostage, with his sword held near her neck.

"Alright kid, either you get serious or your little friend suffers." Sean pressed the tip of his sword against Emma's neck, drawing a bit of blood.

"Let. Her. Go," Abaddon demanded. "Or else."

In response to the threat, Sean made a quick cut across Emma's right cheek. "Agh!"

Sean grinned evilly. "You're not in a position to make threats here! I said get serious! I'm not gonna be beaten by some newbie! In fact, why don't you put your sword down! Face me with your bare hands!"

While Sean seemed to revel in his dominance, the townspeople were not pleased with the situation.

"This is uncalled for!" yelled someone from the crowd.

"Just leave Emma out of it you jerk!" said Kathleen.

Jurano glared at Adam, who stood by the tent. "Hey Taurus, aren't you gonna do something about this?! He's one of your soldiers!"

"No. The enemy won't always fight fair, will they? A fighter must be capable of dealing with such situations in any way they can. Do not interfere," Adam said.

Abaddon held his head low. He walked up to Sean, raised his sword, and planted it in the ground at the soldier's feet. Sean pushed Emma into Abaddon's arms, where she held onto him tightly.

"Abby…" Emma cried.

Abaddon held her away from him and looked into her eyes. While hers were filled with tears, his were black and filled with anger. He wiped away Emma's tears, then the blood on her cheek and neck. "Its ok Emma, just go and join Jurano and Kathleen for a minute. I'll be right there."

Emma nodded and ran over to her friends. Now, Abaddon placed his attention back on Sean. He glared with intense hatred. Sean continued to smirk, now holding both swords in his hands.

"Kick his ass kid!" Someone cheered.

"Yeah, teach him what for!" Another said.

Abaddon quickly rushed towards Sean.

"Hah! Big mistake!" Sean swung both swords diagonally, meaning to cut an x down Abaddon's chest. He wanted to leave a mark, a scar, a reminder for others to never toy with a soldier of the White Fang.

"No, you are the one who is mistaken." Abaddon grabbed the blades of both swords with his bare hands. Sean tried to pull away but the boy's grip was too tight, and it kept getting tighter until the blades broke in half. Abaddon dropped the blade pieces and punched Sean hard in the gut. The soldier spit up before Abaddon then grabbed his head, carried him into the air overhead, and smashed him headfirst into the ground. Sean lay face down and unconscious on the ground, his mask shattered revealing his red orange hair. Abaddon sighed, relieved that the conflict was over.

"Impressive, very impressive," Adam said. "You have more potential than you care to show. You could be a valuable asset-,"

"Explain now, what this 'revolution' is all about," Abaddon interrupted.

Adam's mouth slightly twitched. "Very well. In the past, all we've done to ensure our equality is boycott organizations and gather in large rallies. We wanted to show humanity that we faunus were strong together, but none of these attempts were working. Not in the slightest. Our kind continued to be ridiculed, abused, raped, and subjected to several other atrocities. Ghira, along with our former leader, stepped down from their positions. I alone have taken up the mantle to lead the White Fang."

"And what do you plan to do different?" Abaddon asked.

Adam continued. "We've always used non violent protest, but I think its time to really fight back. To show them were not pushovers, to show the humans that we are the dominant ones and they are the weaklings. I intend to do what many have failed to. Bring humanity to its knees and put them in their place."

Abaddon remained silent for second before replying. "Idiot."

"Excuse me?" Adam said.

"You're an idiot, is what I said. An idiot among faunus. What you're telling me is that you wish to accomplish this goal through violence and dirty methods. And judging from what Sean did, you'll have no problem doing that will you? Your actions will only create more problems, and not every faunus will contribute. Some of us actually think. I had no intention of joining, but thanks to what you've told to me and this fight, I don't even want to be seen anywhere near the White Fang now. You should leave, and find someone else who shares your views." With that Abaddon turned his back on Adam and began to leave.

Adam's mask hid some of his emotion. His mouth stayed closed and he kept a plain face as he watched the boy and the rest of the townspeople disperse. Many of them gave him dirty looks, some children stuck their tongues out, and a few adults even raised their middle fingers. Adam paid them no mind and entered his tent. It was a rather large space on the inside, with several boxes of equipment strewn about and maps or posters put up on the tent wall. In the middle was a table with a marked map of Remnant on its surface. Several White Fang soldiers walked around while doing various tasks.

"You, private Leison," Adam said. "Go pick up Sean from the ground outside."

"Yes sir," said a fox eared male soldier. Leison put down the gun he was cleaning and marched outside.

"I saw what happened outside. That kid's got some balls, talking to you like that," said a younger Corvus.

"Yes Lieutenant, he does," Adam replied. "I need you to have everyone start packing their things."

"We're gonna leave, just like that boy told us to?" Corvus asked.

"Yes," Adam said. He unsheathed his sword, revealing the crimson blade. It showed no signs of wear, always looking brand new as if it was just built. Adam had killed before with this blade, now would be no different. "But we won't leave without saying goodbye."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Hold still Emma," Helena said as she applied alcohol to her daughter's wound. She was cleaning the cut with a cotton swab.

"But it still stings a lot," Emma complained.

"It's supposed to, now stop flinching ok?" Helena asked.

She dabbed Emma's cheek again. "Ow!"

"There, all better." Helena threw away the cotton swab in a nearby trash bin. "Stay here on the couch, I'll go get a bandage."

After what had happened with the White Fang, Emma, Abaddon, Kathleen, and Jurano decided it was best to head home. They went with Emma to her house first to get her wound bandaged. When they entered the house, Abaddon told Emma's parents what happened. He apologized, but they didn't blame him for what happened.

"Sorry again Mr. Trennair," Abaddon said once more.

"Abaddon, its fine. How many times do you have to apologize? You didn't know that they were going to do that. The important thing is that you got her out of there," Daniel told him.

"Quit beating yourself up dude," Jurano added.

"Well, it's a good thing you told them to leave," said Helena as she came back into the living room. "We don't need to be involved in there foolishness." She opened up a small white box and pulled out two bandages. She carefully applied one to Emma's neck and the other to her cheek.

"There, you should heal up in no time," Helena said with a smile.

"How bad is it?" Emma asked, rubbing the bandages slightly.

"Well, the gash on your neck wasn't long, but a little deep. That's why it bled so much. As for your cheek, it was basically just a scratch. Don't worry honey, you'll be fine," Helena said reassuringly.

" _Good. If that creep had stabbed any deeper it would've cut into her throat. We would've had to bring her to the hospital then,"_ Kathleen thought.

"Well, now that that's settled, I think it's best if you stay in the house for the rest of the day," Daniel told the kids.

"Awww, but we never got the chance to see Sam's horses," Emma whined.

Jurano sat next to Emma and put his arm around her. "It's alright Emma, we can have plenty of fun here. We could play, I don't know, spin the bottle?"

At the mention of that game, Emma immediately teleported to Abaddon's side without thinking and grasped his arm.

"What? You don't trust me Emm?" Jurano asked.

"Hell no!" the cat faunus exclaimed.

"Watch your language Emma," her mother told her.

"Sorry Mom," Emma apologized.

"Hey, how about we watch a movie?" Kathleen suggested. "I don't feel like playing spin the bottle either."

"Yayy!" Emma cheered. "How about we watch The Hunters and The Hunted 2?"

"Naw, that's boring," Jurano complained. "How about House Party?"

"You know we can't watch that, especially Emma! Let's just watch her movie then," Kathleen said.

"Uggghhh, you two are so uptight!" Jurano whined.

"Am not!" Emma hissed. "We're watching Hunters and Hunted!"

"House Party!" Jurano yelled back.

"Hunters and Hunted!"

"House Party!"

As both of them went back and forth, the others decided to stay out of it. Abaddon and Kathleen looked at each other and just smiled. They knew an argument between Emma and Jurano would take a while so they just turned the television on, ignoring the battle going on behind them.


	18. Chapter 18

_Ch. 18_

"Hmm, I wonder when Abaddon is coming home. Should I call Helena?" Xahnara asked herself as she sat on a recliner in the living room. She had taken the time since her son left to read one of her favorite books. Training with Abaddon sometimes took up her reading time, so now was a good time to catch up. She was now at the halfway point in her novel when someone unlocked and opened the front door.

"I hope everyone's home, its too quiet in here," said Selmon Rizer as he entered the house. He wore a gray coat over a brown long sleeve shirt, brown boots, and black pants. His dark brown hair was a bit rustled from his latest mission. He made sure his wolf tail wasn't in the doorway before closing the door behind him.

"Hey darling." Xahnara went up to her husband and embraced him. "How was the mission?"

"Oh it was fine. One of the Branwen twins actually tagged along," Selmon said.

"Which one?" she asked.

"Qrow. We had to go protect a village in Mistral from the Grimm," Selmon said. "It wasn't hard and we got paid, but Qrow was…drunk. The entire time."

"Oh really. Well about the other twin? Raven?" Xahnara asked again.

"I asked him about her, but he said he didn't want to talk about it so I left it alone," he told her. "By the way, where's our son?"

"Oh, he went out with his friends. I told him to be back before dark though-," Xahnara stopped when someone else entered the house.

"Hey mom, I'm back," said Abaddon.

"How's it goin son?" Selmon said.

"Dad!" Abaddon ran up to his father and hugged him. "You've been gone for a week. How was your mission?"

Selmon knelt down in front of Abaddon. "It was great son, and a complete success. I did have some help as well."

Abaddon smiled. "Awesome! Can I go with you on the next one?"

"Maybe," Selmon said. "When you're strong enough."

"Awww come on," the boy huffed.

"Well, for now maybe you should go on to bed. You look tired honey," Xahnara said.

"I am. Emma and Jurano can be a handful at times, especially when they argue," Abaddon sighed.

Xahnara giggled. "Oh we know. Now go on to bed. Goodnight, and sweet dreams." She kissed her son gently on his forehead.

"Goodnight son," Selmon said.

"Goodnight." Abaddon trudged upstairs without a second thought. He went into his room, which was a medium sized space with grey blue painted walls, a red boxing stand in one corner, a large bed, dark wood dresser and a large octagonal rug in the middle of the carpet floor.

Remembering that he didn't even have shoes on, he went over to the rug and wiped the dirt off his feet. After that, he lazily jumped onto his bed and slowly fell asleep.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Abaddon!"

"Abaddon!"

"Abaddon!"

"ABADDON! WAKE UP!"

Abaddon got up from his bed breathing somewhat heavily. The air was filled with smoke, causing him to cough hard. A hand grabbed the boy by the back of his shirt and pulled him off the bed and onto the floor.

"Stay down son! You'll be able to move safely without filling your lungs with smoke," said Selmon, who was crouched down on the floor. "Here." He handed Abaddon a pair of his black sneakers and his gauntlets, which the boy put on without hesitation.

Abaddon looked around him and saw that flames were spreading throughout his room. Several of his belongings, such as his dresser and boxing stand, were almost completely destroyed. From the large amount of smoke, he guessed his room wasn't the only place that was burning.

"Wait, where's mom?" Abaddon quickly asked.

"She's outside the house," Selmon said. "Don't worry, she's not hurt. Come on, we should get out fast."

Abaddon nodded and followed his father out of the room and down the stairs. He kept himself in a crouched position as they went. Once downstairs, Abaddon saw how bad the fire was. The kitchen table was devoured by the flames along with several cloths near the stove. Unfortunately, the back door was also blocked by flames.

"Don't want to be near that if it explodes. Let's keep going." Selmon kept moving, glancing behind him every now and then to make sure Abaddon was still behind him.

The living room was just as bad as the kitchen. The furniture was burning just like the wooden table. The front door was open, but a few flames licked at the frame.

"Alright, you go ahead and run out first," Selmon said.

Abaddon nodded. He knelt down and sprinted straight towards the door. However, as soon as he was in the doorway, the roof above gave way and crumbled. Abaddon lunged through before he could be hit by the burning wood. He rolled on the ground and stopped on the grass.

"Abaddon!" Xahnara hugged her son tightly. "I'm so glad you're ok. Where's your father? Is he still in there?"

Xahnara and Abaddon looked back up just in time to see Selmon crash through the front window and onto the grass. His coat was partially covered in flames so he ripped it off, threw on the ground, and stomped on it to put the fire out.

"Whew, that was close," Selmon said in relief. "You two alright?"

"Yes," said Xahnara.

"Sure am," said Abaddon.

"Good, because we've got a situation on our hands. Look over there." Selmon gestured toward the town.

They turned to see the night sky bathed in orange light from more raging fires spreading throughout the island. Abaddon looked around in disbelief. What in the world was going on?

"This…this doesn't feel like an accident," Xahnara said. "All these fires are too big. And for the entire town to be in flames."

"I know. It seems like this was intentional," Selmon agreed. "But who would do this, and why?"

"Maybe we should worry about that later and head straight for town. Other people might need help," Abaddon said.

"Good idea. Let's go," Selmon said.

He grabbed Xahnara's hand and all three of them ran straight for the town. Xahnara couldn't help but chance a glance behind her. Their home, the very house that she, her husband, and parents built together, was completely consumed in flames and partially broken down. Then, she stopped looking, trying to keep herself focused for what was ahead. The trio made it into town, but the sight was much worse up close. Every building was on fire, people ran about in panic trying to get to safety themselves or help others, and worst of all, the creatures of Grimm mulled about. The Grimm attacked any citizen on sight. Some plainly ran while others fought back with guns, bats, or anything they could use as a weapon.

"Damn Grimm." Selmon pulled out his weapon, a vierling gun claymore. "Xahnara, we'll split up and help anyone we can."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Xahnara unsheathed her weapon as well, a dual grappling halberd. "Abaddon, I want you to go to a safe place okay."

"No, I'm going to help too." Abaddon unsheathed two of his blades from his gauntlets. "Besides, I need to see if my friends are alright."

"Abaddon, this is no time for-," Selmon said, but was interrupted when a beowulf lunged from behind Abaddon. He was about to take action when in one swift movement the boy beheaded the Grimm without a second thought.

"Whether you like it or not, I wanna stay. I want to find my friends, and I sure as hell don't plan on leaving without you. So please, just let me go." Abaddon looked his father dead in the eye.

"Selmon," Xahnara said, catching his attention. "There's no point in arguing right now. Abaddon should be fine, besides, he's our son after all."

Selmon closed his eyes and sighed. "Alright, but don't do anything too risky. We help the people get to safety and slay any Grimm in our wake. Alright?"

Xahnara and Abaddon nodded.

"Now go!"

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Help! Somebody help!" A pink haired woman was standing near the flaming remains of her home, holding her baby girl in her arms. However, she was surrounded by beowulves as well. They kept howling and growling at her, knowing that she and the baby were easy prey. She was cornered with no way out. The baby started to cry in her arms, causing the wolves to stir even more.

"Shhh. Shhh. It's ok baby. Mommy's got you," she said as she tried to calm her baby down. She tried to hide the fact that she was scared to death so as not to frighten the baby.

" _I hope help comes soon. It can't end like this! Not now!"_ she pleaded in her mind.

One of the beowulves began to slowly move closer to the pair. It's piercing red eyes on its prey, so weak and vulnerable. It finally decided to finish them. Crouching its legs back, the beowulf lunged towards them with claws outstretched and jaws wide open. The women closed her eyes as the end came near.

 _SLASH!_

The women waited a bit before opening her eyes. In front of her stood a man with a brown shirt, black pants, and boots with a large blade in hand. The beowulf that had lunged at her a moment ago was dead at his feet.

Selmon turned to glance at the woman. "You okay?"

She nodded. She felt safe now that a huntsman was by her side, but they were still surrounded by beowulves.

"Good. I'll take of these Grimm first, then I want you to head to the docks where it should be safe," Selmon told her.

"Okay," she replied.

Selmon fired two rifle rounds, quickly felling two beowulves. One lunged at his right, so Selmon stabbed it straight through its torso. He then pulled a second trigger on the blade and fired several shotgun rounds. The wolf's body imploded and the rest of its brethren were killed from the bullet spread. Selmon kicked the Grimm's body off his blade.

"Go now. To the docks," he said.

"Thank you so much," said the women.

She ran eastward with her baby in hand. As she went, she noticed there were others running in the same direction. She followed in with the crowd towards safety, hoping that she and her baby could get out of this mess.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Everyone please calm down! Just get on the boats in an orderly fashion!" Xahnara yelled as she helped to herd the citizens into the two large boats that were stationed at the docks. With just about all of Marrowshin currently on fire, evacuation was the best bet for everyone. Even the school, Altair academy, was deemed unsafe. They had water towers for putting out fires, but for some reason they were drained. The Grimm made things worse. After panic broke out, they swarmed in droves. There were more on the island than they thought. While here husband and son were out fighting Grimm and guiding the people, Xahnara came here. She could hear the sounds of gunfire, screaming, and buildings collapsing in the distant.

"Xahnara!" Daniel Trennair came running towards her from one of the boats. "We've got a problem. We only have a little room left in the second boat and there's still plenty of people left."

"Dammit," Xahnara cursed. "What about the other boats that were stationed here this morning?"

"I've already contacted them. It'll take three hours for them to get here," Daniel answered.

"What about the assistance from Patch?" Xahnara asked, hoping for a miracle.

Daniel shook his head. "It's been a while since I called them. I don't think they're-"

Suddenly, something burst out of the water behind them. A large serpentine Grimm with a black scaled body, fins, a white armored underbelly, a menacing devil horned white mask, and four red eyes gazed upon the large crowd. It roared, causing a large gust to blow through everyone. Many of the citizens screamed in terror.

" _Of all Grimm, why did a basilisk have to come now? We could fight it, but then all the people and the boats would be at risk,"_ Xahnara thought.

"Daniel, call for help from Patch again. Beg them if you have to," she told him.

"No." Daniel held up his weapon, an axe railgun, and aimed for the basilisk's head. "My family is on one of those ships. I have to fight. I have to try."

The Grimm screamed at them once more. Then it held its mouth open and began preparing a mouth blast.

"Everyone get back!" Daniel yelled.

Those on the ground tried to find cover while those on the boats hid deeper inside. Xahnara and Daniel both stood their ground. Daniel fired a slug from his railgun into the basilisk's mouth. The impact startled the Grimm, but it nevertheless kept charging. Its mouth glowed a bright red. Daniel fired two more rounds, but it had no effect as the energy in its mouth seemed to null the effect of his railgun shots.

 _BOOM!_

To everyone's surprise, the Grimm's head suddenly exploded. The body slowly sank back into the water as it dissipated. Xahnara and Daniel looked around for the source and saw four boats, each fitted with a heavy cannon, sailing towards them.

"Is that who I think it is?" Daniel asked.

The boats parked in the docks and began letting their gangplanks down. From in them, three huntsmen came running out along with the boats' crew. They began moving the rest of the townspeople into the boats. The three huntsmen noticed Xahnara and Daniel and began walking towards them. One of them was a man with short blonde hair, blue eyes, brown cargo shorts, black shoes, a brown leather vest over a tan dress shirt, a metal spaulder, and a tattoo on his right arm. Next to him was a short woman with short black and red hair, silver eyes, a black outfit, black skirt and shoes, and a white hooded cloak. The third huntsman was a man with black spiky hair, red eyes, gray dress shirt, black pants, shoes, and a red tattered cloak.

"You called for aid?" said the blonde when they were within earshot of each other.

"Thank god you got here in time," Daniel said in relief. "We would've been in trouble if you hadn't blasted that basilisk."

"No problem," the blonde replied. "The name's Taiyang by the way. And this is Summer and Qrow. You probably already know him," He indicated towards the two who were accompanying him.

"Yeah, he was on a mission with my husband a while ago. I'm Xahnara and this is Daniel. Daniel is the one who called for your help." Xahnara gave Daniel a pat on the back.

"So what's the situation so far?" Summer asked.

"Well, since you guys arrived with transport for the townspeople, the most difficult part is basically done," Daniel told them. "Most of the people have been evacuated, but there may be some stragglers. Plus, we have to keep the Grimm away from the boats."

"Also, I need to go find my son and my husband," Xahnara added.

"How about Summer, Daniel, and I stay to protect the boats while you and Qrow go," Taiyang suggested.

"Why do I get stuck with the icky jobs?" Qrow whined.

"You did say you wanted to be in the action," Summer told him with a smile.

"Daniel!" The huntsmen turned to see Helena running through the crowd towards them. "Have you seen Emma?" she asked her husband.

"No, I haven't. What's wrong?" Daniel asked.

"I left her alone for a few minutes while I was helping someone with first aid and told her not to leave the boat. When I went to check on her, she was gone. I couldn't find her anywhere around here. She must've ran off into town or something," Helena explained.

Daniel look puzzled. "Into town? But why would she-." The answer suddenly dawned on him. "Oh crap, she must be going after Abaddon."

"A huntsman in training I presume?" Summer asked.

"My son," Xahnara said. "I'm actually not surprised. Those two are inseparable, like family."

"Alright then. Looks like we've got a husband and two kids to find." Qrow pulled out his weapon, a large silver sword with a segmented blade. "Let's get this show on the road shall we?"


	19. Chapter 19

_Ch. 19_

" _Oh Abby, where are you? Why aren't you at the docks with everyone else?"_ Emma asked in her head as she traveled through the burning town.

While she was on the ship earlier, her mother told her _not_ to leave no matter what. Emma went to look for her friends in the area and found Jurano and Kathleen along with several other from school, but she failed to find Abaddon. She heard someone say that his mother was outside defending the other people who had yet to get to safety and that help from Patch had arrived, but he wasn't there either. Unwilling to leave him behind, the little faunus snuck out of the ship on her own.

Emma used her semblance every now and then to teleport behind cover. She was now in the eastern part of the island. She didn't have a weapon with her so fighting any of the Grimm lurking around wasn't an option. There were only beowulves and ursai present, but they still scared her a bit. As she crept behind trees, broken wood, and various other things that could keep her hidden, she would whisper Abaddon's name. They had excellent hearing so hopefully he would at least catch her voice a little and wasn't too far from the docks. She had just teleported onto a large tree branch when she heard the sounds of a struggle nearby. After jumping down to the ground, Emma's ears perked up so she could locate the direction the noise was coming from.

" _There! That must be him!"_ She gazed west of where she was. The sounds she heard were originating from a burning house in that direction not far from her. She was about to run over there when a gloved hand quickly covered her mouth and another restrained both her hands. Emma began to struggle against the one holding her, but their grip was tight on her. She turned her head to see a large White Fang soldier holding her captive.

"Is that the girl?" someone asked. It took a minute, but Emma recognized that voice. She would've teleported away, but she was scared and couldn't really focus.

"Appears so. The same little cat faunus that Sean used against the boy," said the soldier.

"Good. She'll make excellent bait. Once he sees her, he'll have no choice but to come."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Eat this!" Abaddon had just narrowly dodged an Ursa's paw swipe. He ducked under its head and shoved his left hand sword through its jaw. He then stabbed the Grimm right between the eyes with the other sword. Abaddon pulled out his blades as he kicked the dead ursa on its side.

"Well, I think I've had my fill of Grimm for the night. And I didn't see any more civilians on the way over so everyone here must have likely gone to the docks. Hopefully mom and dad are there too," he said to himself.

Abaddon turned around, ready to leave when he was met with an unexpected surprise. Standing just five feet from him with his sword drawn was the man from earlier that day, Adam Taurus.

"Taurus. What do you want? Don't tell me you're here to help or are you and your goons responsible for all this?" Abaddon asked.

"I'm not here to help, but I may be a little responsible for the fire," Adam replied.

"I thought I told you to leave. No one in Marrowshin wants to join you." Abaddon was beginning to get really annoyed. He already had enough to deal with, now this idiot was here pestering him.

"Oh I know, but I just couldn't leave without delivering a message." Adam moved to the side to reveal a White Fang soldier holding Emma captive.

"Emma?!" Abaddon screamed. "Taurus, what do you think you're doing?!"

"Like I said, I want to deliver a message. The fire is just the first part, and I may have "dealt with" a few people on the way here. I have your friend captive so I could fully grasp your attention," Adam said with a slight grin. "The final part of the delivery is you. If you want the girl, then you'll have to go through me."

Abaddon growled with anger as he held his swords in position, then lunged towards Adam without a second thought.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

Selmon was running down a dirt road towards the docks carrying a little brown haired boy in overalls. He found the boy under the rubble that used to be his home. After digging him out, the boy revealed that he had been separated from his family when one of the support beams for his house fell. The resulting destruction not only trapped him, but also broke his right leg so Selmon decided to carry him. As they neared the docks, they ran into Xahnara and Qrow.

"Selmon!" Xahnara smiled at the sight of her husband.

"Hey honey," Selmon replied.

"I see you're holding up just fine," Qrow said.

Selmon chuckled. "Yeah, even though we just recently went through a mission. How's the situation?"

"Assistance from Patch is here, along with two more huntsmen guarding the docks. Several of the ships should be pulling out as we speak. We came to find you, your son, and a little girl that's looking for him," Qrow told him.

"So Abaddon hasn't gone back yet. And the little girl must be Emma," Selmon surmised. "Here Qrow, you take this kid to safety while we go look for them. We know this island better so it'll be quicker if we go."

"Alright." Qrow took the little boy in his arms. "You two be careful. Selmon, don't try to be a hero." Then Qrow ran back the way he came.

"Now let's go find Abaddon." Selmon grabbed Xahnara's hand and ran off further into town.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

Abaddon tried his best to keep up with Adam, but he was sorely outclassed. He barely avoided a sword thrust, then tried to retaliate with a horizontal slash. Adam saw this coming and parried the attack, then rapidly cut Abaddon several times before hitting him in the stomach with the butt of his hilt. Abaddon fell to his knees hugging his stomach and spitting up. He had various bleeding cuts on his body and his vision blurred slightly. As he looked up at Adam, he could only imagine what was going on through the man's head. All the while, Emma was still squirming against the soldier's grip. It was sheer torture watching Abaddon get beaten so badly. She cried, feeling weak and useless in the situation.

"So I'm an idiot among faunus huh? Well what do you expect us to do, go back to doing those stupid rallies?" Adam punched Abaddon in the face. "You expect us to allow the humans to run over us? To let them treat us like dirt? Like shit?" He punched the boy again, but Abaddon still retained his posture. "Well I don't, and I say if we can't find peace that way, then what better than to use force. It's the only way humans will listen. And I think scum like you, a human lover, a traitor, would be better off dead."

Adam slid his blade into his rifle sheath, his hair and the red accents of his attire glowing as his semblance activated. Emma tried to scream for Abaddon to move, but her captor's hand muffled her voice. In one swift motion, Adam executed a clean slash with his blade. Although, to everyone's surprise, someone else stood between him and the boy.

Abaddon's eyes widened as his mind finally grasped who the person was in front of him. "Mom!"

To him, everything seemed to happen in slow motion as he watched his mother helplessly fall to the ground. He stared at his mother's body in horror.

"Well, what an unfortunate surprise. I hope _this_ is a wakeup call for you kid. Don't mess with the White Fang," Adam said. "Let the girl go, we don't need her anymore."

At Adam's command, the White Fang soldier pushed Emma away and followed his leader into the forest. Emma stood up and went over to Abaddon and Xahnara once the two were out of sight.

"Mrs. Rizer! Mrs. Rizer wake up!" Emma screamed as she shook Xahnara's limp form. She then attempted to shake Abaddon out of his stupor. "Abby, come on. We could get her some help! What's wrong with you? Wake up Abby!"

Nevertheless, no matter how hard Emma tried Abaddon would not budge. He just stayed in the same position he was already in. Emma then went back to Xahnara and tried to pick her up, but she wasn't strong enough so she tried the next best thing. "Help! Anyone! We need help! Please!" It didn't matter if her shouts attracted any Grimm, or if the sounds of the fires and crumbling houses got in the way, she just wanted to hopefully grab someone's attention.

"Emma? Is that you?" replied a familiar voice. It was Selmon who arrived on the scene and he looked pretty haggard. His clothes were torn from fighting Grimm and he was partially drenched in sweat. He paused when he saw Xahnara laying on the ground near Emma, blood spilling from her open wound.

"Oh no." Selmon sheathed his weapon on his back and ran over to them. "Emma, what happened here?" he asked as he picked his wife up off the ground. When he did he immediately felt her blood on his hands.

"It was the White Fang Mr. Rizer, they're the ones who started the fire. When I came to find Abby their leader kidnapped me. He used me to make Abby fight him, and when he tried to kill him…Mrs. Rizer jumped in the way and got hurt instead," Emma explained in a fearful voice.

Selmon felt Xahnara's pulse. It was weak, but still there. He sighed in relief knowing that she was still alive. He then turned her around a bit to see her wound. A long bloody slash made its way across her back, from her left shoulder to her right hip. He didn't have any medical supplies on him, so he tore off some of his shirt to use as a bandage and tied it across her torso to cover the wound. He then directed his attention to his son.

"Abaddon," Selmon said, but the boy didn't answer. "Abaddon get up son!"

"I've tried getting him to move, but he won't listen," Emma told him.

"He must be in shock. I can still carry both of them though-," Selmon was saying when a series of growls interrupted him.

A group of six beowulves slowly approached them. They had been attracted to Emma's earlier cries for help. Selmon mentally cursed since he couldn't fight with his wife critically injured, Emma without a weapon, and his son too shocked to move. He thought that maybe if he grabbed Abaddon with one hand and held Xahnara with another, then maybe he and Emma could make a run for it. The problem was if he could run fast enough with all that weight, and get to safety in time for Xahnara to get help. They didn't have any other viable options that he could think of. Plus, it would be unlikely for another huntsmen to find them right now so he channeled the rest of his strength into his arms and legs.

"Emma get ready to run," said Selmon.

"Okay, but what about….Abby?" Emma had turned around to look at him and found him standing up. Although, his face was contorted in what looked like pure rage. His fangs were barred, his eyes black, and his fingers curled with his nails transformed into black claws.

" _RRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"_

Abaddon charged into the throng of beowulves and attacked. He slashed, smashed, and bit through them with little effort. Once he was done, he stood amongst their decaying bodies staring off into the distance.

"Go," he said.

"No Abaddon, you need to calm down," Selmon replied. "Let's just get-."

"I. SAID. GO!" Abaddon growled.

Selmon realized that there was no convincing Abaddon and sighed. "Let's get out of here Emma."

Emma nodded and followed him closely. They ran past Abaddon and back towards the docks. Abaddon watched as they left and waited until they were out of sight to head off into the forest in the same direction Adam went. He was running on all fours, the animal in him fully unleashed as he tore through any Grimm that got in his way. Using his hearing he managed to pick up what sounded like faint footsteps in the distance. It didn't take him long to find two lone White Fang soldiers walking around. He quickly tackled one of them onto the ground and pinned his arms down. Without missing a beat, Abaddon slashed through the soldier's neck. The second one tried to hit the boy from behind with the stock of a rifle, but Abaddon ducked and impaled that soldier in the stomach with his right hand. The soldier started to spit up blood.

"Tell me where Adam is!" Abaddon demanded.

"Over my dead body," the White Fang soldier managed to say.

Abaddon was about to reply when something interesting caught his eye. Not far from where he was, near the northern coast of the island, he could see two bullheads taking off.

" _That should be it,"_ Abaddon thought.

He ripped his hand out of the soldier's stomach and sprinted towards the coast. He made it just in time to see a large group of White Fang loading gear into the last bullhead. Abaddon rushed in without the slightest amount of hesitation and began slaughtering them. Some were caught off guard and were quickly killed while others already had weapons in their hands or close by. The remaining soldiers fired their rifles at Abaddon, but with his semblance active they couldn't even scratch him. Plus, he was moving too fast for them.

"Everyone on the bullhead!" One of them yelled.

Four unarmed soldiers entered the bullhead while four more continued to shoot whilst backing up into the flying ship. Not willing to allow them any means of escape, Abaddon jump in after them just as the door was closing. The bullhead took off, but as it was in the air it began veering left and right, losing balance until it eventually spiraled out of control. The ship flew through the air as it lost altitude. It fell into the forest and heavily smashed through several trees until it crashed somewhere deep in the dark forest.


	20. Chapter 20

_Ch. 20_

"…and later on I woke up in a medical ward on Patch. My grandfather had come back with Atlesian troops to douse the fires. He said that when he found me in the crash site, I should've been dead but something was keeping me alive. That's when he told me about the Longinus fragments," Abaddon said.

"The what?" Nora asked.

Abaddon sighed and gave them the same explanation that he gave Kathleen the other day.

"Wow, all that sounds like too much. And you all were only in your early teens when the fire happened," Weiss said. "What did your parents think about all that?"

"Oh, they didn't know until later. While Kathleen, Emma, and Jurano stayed on Patch until Marrowshin was restored, I went off on my own and told grandpa to take my parents to Atlas. Whether they liked it or not I wanted them to be safe. For all of you to be safe." Abaddon made eye contact with his team when he said the last part.

"And what did you do for those three years?" Ren asked.

"I went after any lead I could find about the White Fang's whereabouts, mainly anything dealing with the fragments or Adam. And I killed many of the Fang who got in my way," said Abaddon. "I've told you all this because since you witnessed some of what I can do, I thought it better to get it out of the way than to have some of you wandering around with unanswered questions in your heads and you'll most likely see me using my powers or possibly _hurting_ someone in the future. But I have to ask you, knowing all of this, do any of you think differently of me?"

Everyone descended into silence for a few minutes as they exchanged looks.

"Speak now or forever hold thine peace," he added.

Unsurprisingly, Emma was the first to speak up whilst tightly hugging Abaddon's right arm. "Abby, you know I'll stay with you no matter what. I just don't wanna see you kill again."

"I don't abandon my bros," Jurano said. "And you're my best bro, no matter what."

Kathleen winked. "I have to keep an eye on my partner after all."

Next was Cinder. "Well, you already know my answer, along with Neo's. We've never thought different, we just knew you were driven to your cause."

"I'm gonna go along with Cinder's decision. Besides, you're a pretty cool guy," Mercury added.

Emerald was looking off in another direction when Mercury nudged her in her side. "Ow, alright. As long as Cinder's okay with it I suppose."

Then Pyrrha stood up. "Well, it's been a several months now since we became friends right? From what you've told us it seems you were just trying to protect those you cared about and avenge your home, you just probably did it in a different way since you were so angry and vengeful at the time. But I think that what you've done in the past doesn't matter anymore, who you are now is what is important. Does anyone else agree?"

The rest of team JNPR and team RWBY all nodded in response. Well, most of team RWBY. Blake looked very unsure of all this. Abaddon decided to leave it be. He kind of expected everyone else besides his team, Cinder, and Neo to fear him or worse reject him. Although, it turned out to be better than he could've thought.

"Thanks guys. I don't really know what else to say." Abaddon felt really relieved.

"You don't have to say anything, but you could make excuse notes for all of us. I'm pretty sure we've missed at least an hour of class," Yang said.

"Wait!" Nora said as she held her hands out to stop everyone.

"What is it Nora?" Ren asked.

"Can you show us a bit of your twilight stuff, pleeaaaasssee?" Nora asked Abaddon.

"Yeah, show us!" Ruby jeered.

"Uhmm guys, I'm not sure this is the time," Jaune pleaded.

Abaddon merely chuckled at the request. "Alright, you asked for it."

The boy put his hands out and in his palms two tiny orbs formed. The one on the left was white and the other on the right black. He put the orbs together and they fused into one, getting slightly bigger with the two colors smoothly blending into one another. The orb was about the size of a tennis ball. In his right hand, Abaddon flicked the orb towards the back of the classroom. It zoomed past the others until it hit the back wall. Despite its size, the small orb hit the stone wall with a loud boom and enough force to create a massive crater that spanned a great amount of its surface. As soon as the dust from the small explosion settled, Jurano immediately sprinted for the door.

"Jurano, what's the rush?" Kathleen exclaimed.

He didn't look back when he answered. "Last one to get caught by Goodwitch is a rotten purple pickled egg."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Good job getting all that dust kid. You and your team have proved very useful," said Corvus.

He and Desmond stood in an underground base stationed under Mt. Glenn. It was the perfect place to take their operation without any prying eyes getting onto them. A small huntsmen team was spotted in the ruined city last week, but they left without even a hint at what the White Fang were up to.

"Thanks Lieutenant Corvus. We plan to do all we can for any future assignments," Desmond replied. "All this dust, enough to supply an army. Do you know what all of it is for?"

"We are supplying an army, but it's not the kind of army you would think it is," Corvus said. "For now, that's all you get to know. I'll tell you when Adam allows me to, otherwise I would've told you already. No hard feelings Desmond."

Desmond clicked his teeth. "It's alright. I'll keep doing my part and be patient."

"Good. You and your team should get some rest." Corvus was about to leave until Desmond grabbed his shoulder.

"One more thing Corvus. From one of your men that survived the Longinus retrieval mission, I heard that you ran into 'him.' Is that true?" Desmond asked.

"Yes, we ran into the boy. I kind of knew he would come back someday, but I didn't expect him to be there. How he found that factory was beyond me, but I'll tell you this; don't _ever_ underestimate him," Corvus told him.

"Oh come on, you've fought him several times right. If you can tussle with him then so can I." Desmond seemed a bit too overconfident in what he just said, worrying Corvus even more.

"You say that now, just wait until you actually face him. When he's serious. You'll regret letting your guard down, and I'm not the only one who knows that." With that, Corvus left to tend to the other soldiers.

Desmond went his way as well. He walked past the large crates filled with the dust and the many soldiers who mulled about either patrolling the area for Grimm or chatting with one another. For an underground base, there was an ample amount of light, mainly from the large lamps they placed around the area and a few holes that punctured the ceiling to let sunlight in. If it weren't for those two things, everyone would be swamped in darkness and the Grimm would be attracted to the lamps, likely destroying them. Desmond made it to the other end of the base where a small train station lay. This was the people's attempt in Mt. Glenn to link their city to Vale before they were massacred. He wondered how much of that population was faunus, how many were human. He shook the second thought out of his head. The humans were probably the ones who made the problem worse anyway.

Desmond approached the only train that was working in the station. They were going to use it for a future operation, but for now it was mainly a rest spot. Desmond entered one of the open cars where his team was already eating.

"Everyone feeling okay?" He asked them.

"Yeah," Coreg answered as he sat on a crate with his lunch. Like Desmond, still had his black cloak on, but under it he wore a custom White fang uniform that was similar to Corvus'.

"Sure thing," said the other two teammates who sat on crates on the other side of the car. They were fox faunus twins, a boy and a girl. The boy, Ignis Aurora, had dark green eyes with short dark bluish grey hair that was swept up at the front of his hairline. He wore a sleeveless blue shirt with a long sleeve white jacket with metal studs on the shoulders, black rolled up pants with armored shins, and black sneakers. His sister, Tsunalae Aurora, had the same eyes and hair color but her hair ended in a mid-length braid. She wore a short sleeved blue crop top over a dark grey shirt, blue shorts, studded fingerless gloves, and a grey belt with a pleaded teal skirt hanging from it and white shoes.

"Good. Corvus says to stay here for a while and rest until we're given a new mission," Desmond told them. He sat on a crate next to Coreg, who handed the boy his lunch tray.

"Thanks." Desmond took the tray and began eating.

"Hey Des, what kind of mission do you think we'll be sent on next?" Ignis asked.

"I don't know. I just hope we get something interesting to do," Desmond said.

"Maybe stealing from a shopping district," Tsunalae added.

Ignis frowned. "Shut up Tsu. You just wanna get some new clothes and jewelry."

"Well, I was hoping to stay in Vale for a while," Desmond said.

"Is it because of that guy you wish to meet?" Coreg asked.

Desmond smiled. "Yeah. He seems to be some kind of hot shit around here since he reappeared from his three year absence. Even Corvus is concerned. I'm ready to see what this kid's made of."

"But if even he is concerned then we should probably keep our guards up if we encounter him or anyone like him," Ignis suggested.

"Whatever, you probably don't even know what the guy looks like," Tsunalae told him.

Desmond smirked. "Well Corvus and Adam do. Maybe I'll get lucky and run into him on our next mission into Vale. I've been waiting for some excitement."


	21. Chapter 21

_Ch. 21_

Soon enough, the fall season started to end and winter began creeping up on Vale. Snow wasn't present as of yet, but the air did get colder at night. Many students at beacon were hoping for snow, knowing that any large amount of snowfall would cancel any extra classes and allow them to go home for break, but for now they were still stuck at school.

"Ugghh, how did you convince me to play this stupid game?" Emerald whined.

She was in the lunchroom with Yang, Ruby, and Mercury playing the Remnant board game. Before, she would have refused to play, but they convinced her. She tried to beat him one on one and ended up losing five to one, greatly eroding her patience with the game.

"I told you it would be fun. I didn't say you were gonna win," Mercury told her. "Besides, its good practice."

"Yeah, at least you did better than Weiss did against Ruby," Yang said.

"What was the score?" Emerald asked.

"Ten to zero," Ruby answered. "She was very _very_ determined."

"Wow, I didn't think someone could be that bad," Mercury said.

"Doesn't mean I plan on losing to you ten times," Emerald huffed.

As they prepared to start another game, Blake walked up to the table.

"Hey Blake, how ya been?" Mercury asked.

"Just fine," she answered plainly. "Have any of you by chance seen Abaddon?"

"Uhhmmmmm, last time I saw him he was going outside into the nearby forest behind the gym for a workout," Ruby said.

"Ok, thanks," Blake said. "I'll see you guys later."

Blake left her friends to their game. She walked across campus until she reached the gym, then exited through its rear double doors. Behind the building was Emerald Forest, or rather a portion of it that the academy had kept clear of Grimm. Blake didn't really know where to start looking from here so she walked into the forest. She made sure to keep her guard up just in case. She trekked through the trees for a while until she heard the sound of splitting wood. She followed the sound until she came to a small clearing filled with downed trees. Some looked like they had been gripped by giant hands while others were cut cleanly in half.

"Blake?"

Blake looked up past the group of fallen trees to see Abaddon standing on the other side. A pair of black and white clawed hands emanated from his back.

"What're you doing out here?" he asked her.

"I needed to talk to you," she said.

Blake walked over the destroyed trees to where he was and stared at the twilight claws. "Also, could you put those away? Their kind of intimidating."

"Oh, sorry," he said as he made the appendages disappear. "So what is it? You've been quiet for a week since I told you and the others about my abilities and past endeavors. Do you still have questions?"

Blake looked him in the eye and bluntly stated, "I know who you are."

Abaddon was confused for a moment. "Say what?"

"I know who you are, or perhaps who you used to be," Blake said. "Those few years you said you would hunt down the White Fang, you were on the news. You were the vigilante, the predator of the white fang."

Abaddon stared blankly at her. "I knew someone would say something about that sooner or later. Yes, I was the vigilante, the predator that the White Fang oh so despised because I hunted them like prey. I guess that was the wolf part of me acting on instinct. I was also called the bloody wolf, wrathful faunus, or the hell hound, but it didn't really matter what they called me."

"On the news, so many were slaughtered. Some even in front of the camera! Did you ever wonder if it was…really worth it?" Blake asked, an edge of frustration in her voice.

"No I didn't. I wanted them dead, especially Adam. If they were in my way, I fought them," he told her. "At the time, all I yearned for was vengeance."

"But you didn't have to kill them! They were just misguided!" Blake's voice started getting louder as her frustration rose.

"Misguided? Not all of them were Blake. You didn't see what I saw ok. With Adam in control, the White Fang became more ruthless. I've broken into bases to find many inhuman things," he said.

"Like what exactly?!" Blake exclaimed.

"Humans imprisoned along with faunus who were branded traitors! Some were killed, raped, even tortured! You think that's misguided?! Only a little over a handful of them can actually think on their own and have escaped from there clutches," Abaddon retorted.

"And how would you know that?" she asked furiously.

"Because Cinder, Neo, and I are the ones who freed them. We helped them to find a place to start over or go back to what was taken from them. Remora and Klyde were the same remember? Forced to do their bidding or else their family would die? What would you do in a situation like that?" Abaddon angrily asked.

Blake was about to retort, but couldn't think of what to say. If she was in their position, she probably would've done the same thing in order to keep her loved ones safe. She would've done anything she was told, maybe even kill someone just for her family's sake. That didn't stop her from being angry though. All she could do was glare at him until another question came to mind.

"Did Cinder and Neo do as you did?" she asked.

"Not really," Abaddon answered. "Neo doesn't like it, and her stepfather and I made sure she never had to kill. Cinder feels the same, afraid that such an action could change her. When they fought alongside me they would take our enemies down, not out."

"Ok." Blake sighed, calming her emotions so as not to go overboard. She was one of probably many who wanted nothing other than equality without needless violence. She remembered the past news footage of tens, once even a hundred White Fang, dead. All at the hands of one faunus who chose to take their lives out of anger and vengeance. If Abaddon wasn't her friend and had continued doing what he did in the past, the conversation would've taken a turn for the worse.

"I'm sorry Blake. I care about the wellbeing of all faunus just as you do. It's just that for me, most of the White Fang are an exception. But you and the others are my friends. I can't promise that I won't kill again, especially since the White Fang have more of the Longinus fragments. Although, I'll do the best I can to contain myself," Abaddon said.

"Alright," Blake said.

Abaddon sighed. "You still mad?"

"Kinda," she answered. "It's just that life for us faunus can be hard and violence isn't the only answer. You know that right?"

"I do, but words don't always reach everyone's ears," he said.

Blake nodded in agreement, but she still had a troubled look on her face. Abaddon felt bad for her so he decided to try to make the situation better.

"Hey Blake, how about we go hang out in the city, maybe get something to eat. Maybe some fish?" he suggested.

Blake smiled slightly, or at least tried to. "Sure…Let's bring the others as well."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

 _Later on in the city…_

"How come everyone always votes against where I want to eat?" Weiss whined.

"Because it's too classy and the servings are too small," Jurano answered.

"Well, it wouldn't hurt to try," said Velvet.

"Maybe I could've ordered a buffet," Weiss suggested.

"Calm down Weiss. You don't have to spend so much," Kathleen said. "Besides, we can save your choices for special occasions."

"Fine," Weiss huffed.

"Another good thing is that Weiss knows where she's going, unlike a certain lost blonde," Abaddon said.

Yang laughed. "Hey, I just forgot. We made it there didn't we?"

"We did. And those burgers were delicious," Abaddon said as he licked his lips.

"So where are we going anyway-," Ruby stopped when she spotted a nearby crime scene on the street adjacent to theirs. She ran over to check it out. The others of RWBY, KAJE, and Velvet noticed and followed her as well. Two detectives stood in front of a dust shop, surrounded by police tape. From outside, they could see that the main window was broken and the shelves inside strewn about.

"Excuse me, what happened here?" Ruby asked one of the detectives.

"Eh? Robbery. Probably the fifth or sixth dust shop hit in the last few weeks. This city's turning into jungle," the detective told them.

"They left all the money again," the other detective whined.

"Yeah, doesn't make sense," the first detective said. "Who needs that much dust? You thinkin, uhh, White Fang?"

"Yeah I'm thinkin we don't get paid enough," his partner replied.

"Hmph, the White Fang. What an awful bunch of degenerates," said Weiss.

Abaddon frowned. _"Oh no."_

"What's your problem?" Blake asked.

"My problem? I simply don't care for the criminally insane," the heiress answered.

"The White Fang is hardly a bunch of psychopaths. They're a collection of misguided faunus." Blake briefly made eye contact with Abaddon when she said that. He simply nodded in response to stay on her good side.

Weiss raised an eyebrow. "Misguided? They want to wipe humanity of the face of the planet. Why don't you ask Abaddon, he knows more about this than anyone here."

Abaddon rapidly shook his head in disagreement. "Don't bring me into this Weiss."

"What does she mean by that Jurano?" Velvet whispered in his ear.

"I'll tell you later Vel," Jurano whispered back.

"Then they're _very_ misguided," Blake retorted. "Either way, it doesn't explain why they would rob a dust shop in the middle of downtown Vale."

"She's got a point," Ruby said.

"That still doesn't change the fact that the White Fang are a bunch of scum. Those faunus only know how to lie, cheat, and steal," Weiss said.

"Uhm Weiss," Velvet said, trying to interrupt.

"That's not necessarily true," Yang added.

"Hey, stop that faunus!"

"Well, speak of the devil," said Jurano.

Everyone ran back down the street to witness a male faunus running from a store. He had short blonde hair with fair skin and wore an open white jacket with short sleeves, a gold necklace, red arm guards, rolled up blue jeans with wraps underneath, black and yellow sneakers, and a blonde monkey tale. As he ran past them, he took the time to wink at Blake then blast off down the street and around the corner with the detectives hot on his tail.

"He's one of the exchange students from Mistral I saw a while ago," Ruby said.

"Quick, we must observe him!" Weiss sprinted after the monkey faunus with the group tailing behind her. As she turned the corner, she unexpectedly ran into someone and fell to the ground. Everyone else turned the corner just as Weiss was getting up to see the faunus jumping out of sight.

"No, he got away!" Weiss whined.

"Uhhh Weiss." Yang pointed to the girl Weiss had just knocked down. Startled, Weiss got up her on her feet.

"Salutations," the girl said. She had short curly orange hair with a pink bow, green eyes, freckles, and wore an old fashioned blouse with short grey and green overalls, and a black and green collar and stockings.

"Umm, hello," said Ruby.

"Hi," Emma said.

"Are you okay?" Yang asked.

"I'm wonderful. Thank you for asking," the girl said cheerfully.

She didn't look okay, still laying on the ground. Everyone exchanged looks and wondered if she had a screw loose in her head.

"Do you…wanna get up?" Yang asked.

"Yes." The girl got up on her feet at once. Everyone took a step back from her.

"My name is Penny. It's a pleasure to meet you," she said to them.

"Hey Penny, I'm Ruby."

"I'm Emma."

"I'm Weiss."

"Blake."

"I'm Velvet."

"Jurano."

"Abaddon."

"Kathleen."

"Are you sure you didn't hit your head?" Yang asked, earning a hit in her side from Blake. "Oh, I'm Yang."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Penny said again.

"You already said that," Weiss told her.

"So I did," responded Penny.

"She's like a robot," Emma whispered to Kathleen.

"Well, sorry for running into you," Weiss said as the group began to leave.

Emma waved at her. "Later Penny."

Ruby waved at Penny as well. "Take care friend."

The Huntsmen left Penny where she was and went back around the corner that they came from.

"She was…weird," Yang said.

"Eh, I've seen weirder," Jurano added.

"Now, where did that faunus riff raff run off to?" As soon as the words left Weiss mouth, Penny suddenly appeared in front of them.

"What did you call me?" she asked.

Weiss pointed back the way they came from and looked from Penny and back, wondering how she managed to get in front of them without anyone noticing.

"How in the wild blue hell did she do that?" Abaddon wondered.

"Maybe she's fast like Ruby?" Velvet guessed.

"Oh I'm really sorry. I definitely didn't think you heard me," Yang apologized.

"No, not you." Penny walked past Weiss, Blake, and Yang to stand in front of Ruby. "You."

"Me?" Ruby was surprised, she didn't know what she said to offend Penny. "Oh, I…I don't know…I…what I…uhm..uhh."

"You called me friend. Am I really your friend?" Penny asked.

"Uhhhh." Ruby gazed at the others for an answer. Everyone gave signs to say no, except Jurano and Abaddon who jokingly had their thumbs up. Emma couldn't really decide and just copied them instead.

"Yeah, sure. Why not?" she answered.

After hearing Ruby's answer, Penny raised her hands in joy. "Sensational! We can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys."

"Uhm, is this what it was like when you met me?" Ruby asked Weiss.

"No, she seems far more coordinated," Weiss replied.

"So, what are you doing in Vale?" Yang asked, trying to change the subject.

"I'm here to fight in the tournament," Penny told her.

"Wait, you're fighting in the tournament?" Weiss repeated.

Penny raised her hand in a salute. "I'm combat ready."

"Forgive me, but you hardly look the part," Weiss said.

"Says the girl wearing a dress," Blake said.

"It's a combat skirt," Weiss replied.

Ruby zoomed right next to her. "Yeah." Then gave her a high five.

"Wait a minute. If you're here for the tournament, does that mean you know that monkey tailed rapscallion?" Weiss asked Penny, aggravating Blake.

"Weiss don't," Kathleen pleaded.

"The who?" Penny asked, confused.

Weiss raised a crudely drawn picture of the aforementioned faunus. "The filthy faunus from the store."

"Why do you keep saying that?" Blake asked. She could only stand so much discrimination.

Weiss looked at her teammate. "Huh?"

"Stop calling him a rapscallion. Stop calling him a degenerate. He's a person," Blake said to the heiress.

"Uhm Abby, we should probably leave them to it," Emma told Abaddon.

"Hold on Emma," he told her.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Weiss continued. "Would you like to stop referring to the trashcan as a trashcan, or this lamppost as a lamppost?"

"I'd rather not be compared to a trashcan," Velvet said.

"Stop it!" Blake exclaimed.

"Stop what? He clearly broke the law. Give him time, he'll probably join up with those other faunus in the White Fang," Weiss finished.

Blake clenched her fists in utter annoyance. "Ugh, you ignorant little brat!"

Weiss narrowed her eyes, but continued to run her mouth as she went after Blake.

"Ok, now we leave," Abaddon said.

"About time," said Kathleen.

"We're we going?" Penny asked.

"My team, Velvet, and I are going anywhere but here. I guess Weiss can really be no different from her damn father. We need to go. If I hear anymore, I might actually lash out at Weiss," Abaddon growled as he and Kathleen began to depart.

"I can understand why Blake's so upset. What she said was really hurtful," Velvet said.

"Come on Velvet, let's go." Jurano grabbed Velvet's hand and led her away.

"See ya later guys," Emma said as she caught up with her brother.

Wanting to get far away and forget about Weiss' words, KAJE and Velvet went back to Beacon to turn in, hoping to get a good nights sleep.


	22. Chapter 22

_Ch. 22_

Two days had passed since the incident with team RWBY. It was later that same night that during the argument between Blake and Weiss, Blake had ran away from the school. Team RWBY asked team KAJE for assistance in finding her. On the second day, Sunday, both teams were out in the city looking for Blake.

"Blake! Blaaake!" Ruby shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Blake!" Yang shouted.

"Hey Blake, come on out please!" shouted Abaddon.

"Blake, I've got some fresh tuna for you!" Jurano added.

Emma looked behind the group to see Weiss silently tailing behind.

"Weiss, why aren't you helping?" Emma asked.

"You know who might be able to help? The police," Weiss suggested.

"Ughhh, Weiss." Ruby gave her partner an angry look.

"It was just an idea," Weiss retorted.

"Yeah, a bad one," Ruby said back.

"But why not ask the police? They would be of great help," Kathleen said.

"Well, guys…it's kind of confidential," Yang told them.

"Oh really. You don't think me telling you about the Longinus fragments wasn't confidential?" Abaddon asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Welll, uhhm, that's a little different from this," Ruby told him.

"Anyways, Weiss I think we should talk to Blake and hear her side of the story before we jump to any conclusions," Yang suggested.

"I think when we hear it you'll all realize I was right," said Weiss.

" _Whatever asshole,"_ Jurano thought.

"And I think Weiss' hair looks wonderful today," Penny added out of nowhere.

Everyone jumped and turned at the sound of her voice.

"Ahh, Penny where did you come from?!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Can she not do that?" Jurano asked. "It's almost as frustrating as when Emma does it."

"Hey guys, what're you up to?" Penny happily asked.

"We're looking for our friend Blake," Yang answered.

"Ohhhh, you mean the faunus girl," Penny surmised.

Yang, Ruby, and Weiss went silent after hearing that.

"Don't tell me you guys didn't know," Emma said.

"We actually…didn't," Yang said.

"Blake's a faunus?" Jurano asked.

"Yeah, she's got cat ears," Abaddon said.

"What cat ears? She wears a…bow." Yang slowly came to a realization as she said those words.

"Abby and I could already tell what she was," Emma added. "We are faunus after all, we can differentiate our own kind from humans. We assumed everyone already knew about Blake."

"That explains why she was so defensive that day when Weiss was running her mouth, but it doesn't explain why she ran away," Kathleen said. "What else happened Ruby?"

"Oh my gosh, your teammate's gone?" Penny asked.

"Yes Penny," Yang answered.

"I don't know, it's confidential for a reason," Ruby said.

"What reason? Her privacy? I've already read Ninjas of Love two times," Jurano said.

"No, we just didn't want Abaddon to freak out or something," Yang answered.

"Freak out? Wait a minute. Does this mean what I think it means?" Abaddon gave them a questioning expression.

"She may or may not have been part of the White Fang," Ruby said rather quickly.

Abaddon frowned. "No wonder she was grilling me the other day about the White Fang. Although, I don't think she's like them, even a little."

"Well, we don't know that for sure," Weiss added, grabbing everyone's attention.

"Weiss, she's our teammate," Yang told her.

"I know, but you heard what she said," Weiss said.

"It doesn't matter what she said, we still need to find her!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Still-."

"WEISS!" Weiss turned to see Abaddon's black and red eyes staring at her with his fangs bared. His tricolored aura emanated from his body, bathing him in it. Before she knew it, he was already in her face.

"You know what's really unfortunate, that you fail to see the real problem here," he growled. "You keep talking all this shit about the White Fang, about faunus, about your teammate! If I didn't know you, if you weren't my friend, if I wasn't cautious of the people around me and how they would react to seeing my powers, then you'd be done! Gone! Right her and now! Just another bloody mess on the street! You don't know what it's like for others who have to listen to you rant thanks to that damn attitude of yours! So I suggest you keep your mouth shut and focus on finding Blake! Are we understood?"

Weiss couldn't find the strength to move for a few seconds. The menacing pressure of his aura paralyzed her with fear. Although, she managed to snap out of it and nod.

Abaddon calmed himself as he went back to normal. "Good. Well, we need to cover more ground so I suggest we split up."

"Good idea. It'll be easier to find her that way," Yang said. "We should call each other if any of us find her alright."

Everyone nodded and split up into teams of two. Abaddon went with Kathleen, Jurano ran off with Emma, Yang walked away with Weiss, and Ruby was stuck with Penny.

"I'm glad you were able to control yourself," Kathleen said once she and Abaddon were out of earshot of the others.

"Yeah, it would've been a mess. I really wanted to knock some sense into Weiss," said Abaddon. "What would you have done if I lashed out?"

"Probably wouldn't have stopped you from getting one hit in, but the rest…well you know," she said.

"Just as I thought," Abaddon chuckled.

"So what do you think Blake's doing now?" Kathleen asked.

Abaddon shrugged. "I don't know, but whatever it is let's hope she doesn't get into trouble."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

 _Later that evening…_

Blake lay face forward on the rooftop of a building at the docks. For a while now she stayed and watched the massive shipment of dust that the Schnee Dust Company had left there, hoping to find some answers. Many believed that the White Fang were responsible for the dust robberies, but it didn't make sense to her. Since when did they need so much dust?

"Did I miss anything?" The faunus Blake and her friends had seen days ago, Sun Wukong, landed right next to Blake. After she ran away from Beacon, he had been keeping her company. She told him about her past, her affiliation with the White Fang and how they changed from a faunus rights group to radical extremists. Sun was a bit annoying at times, but she appreciated his company, his upbeat attitude, and the fact that he still willingly accepted her despite knowing she used to be in the White Fang.

"Not really. They've offloaded all the crates from the boat. Now they're just sitting there," she told Sun.

"Cool. I stole you some food." Sun handed Blake one of an armful of apples that he had.

"Do you always break the law without a second thought?" she asked.

"Hey, weren't you in a cult or something?" Sun's question earned him a stern look from the cat faunus. "Okay, too soon."

Suddenly, they were buffeted by a large gust of wind as a lone bullhead flew overhead and landed on the docks. The cargo bay opened and, much to Blake's dismay, several White Fang soldiers walked out.

"Oh no."

"Is that them?" Sun asked.

"Yes…it's them," Blake answered, recognizing the unmistakable red symbol on the fighter's backs.

One of the soldiers came out of the ship holding a rifle. "Alright, grab the tow cables."

Sun couldn't help but notice the look of sadness on Blake's face. "You really didn't think they were behind it, did you?"

"No, I think deep down I knew. I just…didn't want to be right," she said.

"Hey!" Another voice emanated from the bullhead, this time with a commanding tone. "What're you waiting for? We're not the most inconspicuous bunch of thieves at moment, so why don't you idiots hurry on up. And don't give me any bullshit!" Another faunus walked out of the ship. It was a man with dark tan skin, dark yellow eyes with slit pupils and black sclera, and mid length ash grey hair that was shaved at the sides. He wore a grey short sleeve unzipped jacket with black insides and black scale like pauldrons on the shoulders, black pants with red armor on the sides, black fingerless gloves with red palms, three cord bracelets on his left arm, and dark grey combat boots. He also had a few scales on his arms, various scars and burn marks, and sported a large black lizard tail with a blood tinge on the underside. He had no shirt on under the open jacket so his bare chest was visible, showing his fit frame along with various scars and one massive one in the left side of his chest. His mask, which he kept clipped to his hip, looked like that of a dragon with stylized red marks on its surface.

"Never seen that kind of faunus before," Sun said. "Who is this guy?"

"No, not him. Anyone but him," Blake said as she pulled out her katana.

"Hey, what're you doing?!" Sun cried.

Without hesitation, Blake jumped off the roof and headed towards the White Fang's location. She snuck up behind a crate that was directly behind the lizard faunus.

"Come on, we don't have that much time to kill," the lizard faunus yelled.

Seeing her chance to strike, Blake quickly snuck up on the lizard and held his hands behind his back whilst also putting her katana against his neck.

"What the-?!" The faunus gritted his teeth. "Oh for fucks sake!"

"Nobody move!" Blake commanded.

The White Fang soldiers around them pulled out their weapons and aimed towards Blake.

"Wait a minute…I know that voice. Well, if it isn't little Belladonna! How've you been kitty kat?" her captive laughed.

"Bantus!" What're you doing here? You're supposed to be dead!" She told him.

Bantus laughed even louder. "Ah, but I live. Did ya miss me? Come on, tell me you did."

Blake took off her bow, showing off her status as a faunus to the soldiers. "Brothers of the White Fang, why are you aiding this scum. Do you not remember who he is, the atrocities he's committed?"

Blake's words caused the soldiers to lower their weapons and either look down or at one another.

"Oh Blakey, Blakey, Blakey. There's so much you don't know," Bantus said with a smile.

"What're you talking about?" she asked.

"The White Fang are thinking big, and I mean really BIG. And Adam has made me a commanding officer in his new grand plan," Bantus told her.

Blake pushed her katana further against his throat. "Tell me what it is or I'll put end to your little operation."

Just then, a huge gust of wind hit them as several more bullheads hovered over the docks.

"I wouldn't exactly call it a little operation," said Bantus.

Blake looked up at the bullheads in horror. This distraction gave Bantus the opportunity he needed to escape. His tail lashed out twice, knocking Blake off her feet and slapping her away from him. Blake gathered herself and stood up to face her opponent. Bantus smiled widely as he unsheathed two large daggers from his belt. Etched on one of the daggers were the words "No Hope" while the other had "No Future."

"I'm gonna have a little fun with you Blake, but just in case you have friends nearby…" Bantus looked up to the sky and let out a loud inhuman screech. It was a pain on the ears as Blake had to cover hers from it. When Bantus stopped, his screech was answered by another that was further away.

"What was that for?!" Blake asked.

Bantus smiled wider than before. "It's play time!"

 _In the city…._

Kathleen and Abaddon were still on their search for Blake when they heard the loud screeching.

"What was that? Could it be Grimm?" Kathleen asked.

"No. Even worse," answered Abaddon. "It sounded like it came from the docks. We need to get there fast!"

Kathleen nodded and the duo sprinted full speed towards their destination. Kathleen used her semblance to boost her speed using wind gusts while Abaddon ran on all fours.

" _Blake, if you're at docks right now, I hope you're still alive long enough for us to get there,"_ Abaddon thought.

Meanwhile, Blake and Sun were having a tough time at docks. Sun had already beaten down some of the White Fang soldiers in the area and now it was him and Blake fighting Bantus, although he proved to be tougher than they thought.

"Thanks for the fun kids. I'm having a wonderful time," Bantus mused. In his right hand he now held his daggers combined in twinblade form and in his left hand a silver whip sword.

"What the hell is this guy?! We can barely hit him!" Sun yelled in frustration.

"We have to keep trying Sun. We can't let him escape!" Blake told him.

She dashed at Bantus and swung both her swords in a rapid spin. Bantus blocked with his twinblade, ducked, then slashed at her feet. Blake jumped into the air, but Bantus had already lashed out his whip sword. The sword wrapped around her left leg, allowing Bantus to slam her to the ground. Sun charged in from behind, trying to get an edge. Bantus merely spun his twin blades to block the gunshots from Sun's gunchucks.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Blake, you of all people should know how hard it is to capture me," Bantus said, taunting the cat faunus.

Bantus' sword came off of Blake's leg. He then dodged through another salvo of gun fire from Sun and found an opening in which he grabbed the monkey faunus' shirt, headbutt him, and threw him near where Blake was. As if it wasn't enough, more White Fang troops descended from the other bullheads and surrounded the two huntsmen.

"Wow, killed by cannon fodder. Not the way I would like for you to go out, but we've got things to do." Bantus raised his hand as if to signal an execution when suddenly there was a large explosion. Looking up, everyone saw one of the bullheads, now in pieces, fall into the water.

"What's going on?" one of the White Fang soldiers yelled before a large gust of wind sent him and several others careening into one of the crates. The last few were knocked out by a white wave of energy that came out of nowhere.

"Blake!" Abaddon and Kathleen had arrived, running up to Blake and Sun.

"Blake are you alright?" Kathleen asked as she helped Blake to her feet.

"Yeah, I think so," Blake answered.

Abaddon helped Sun stand up. He had a red bruise on his forehead from the headbutt Bantus gave him. "You gonna be alright monkey boy?" Abaddon asked.

"Yeah," Sun groaned. "I'll live. Thanks for the assist."

"You can thank me after we deal with this problem." Abaddon unsheathed his swords and turned towards the fallen group of White Fang soldiers. Among them, only Bantus stood. He had been hit by Kathleen's wind attack but it wasn't enough to keep him down for long.

"Yes! Finally! The wolf has come out to play!" Bantus screamed in delight.

"You two know each other?" Blake asked.

"Unfortunately," Abaddon answered grimly. "Bantus, how are you still alive?"

"Well, let's just say a little "miracle" happened. And now I'm back for more fun, but it's not just me and the wimps running around." Bantus held his arms out and two huge Grimm appeared behind him. They were just like the mysterious Grimm that team RWBY fought a while ago, but one had ram horns along with goat hind legs and the other had jackal ears and a tail.

"My pets are here too. Think you can handle them?" Bantus laughed.

"Guys, those are the same Grimm that my team and I fought on our mission in Mt. Glenn," Blake said.

"Their called Ghouls, and their not your typical Grimm," Abaddon said. "You think you can take them while I deal with Bantus?"

"Yeah," Kathleen answered.

"Sure thing," Sun said.

"Good luck." Abaddon sprinted towards Bantus at full throttle. The Ghouls tried to stop him, but Abaddon dodged both of them and kept going. Bantus put up his sword and twinblade and their blades clashed together.

"I'll make sure you're good and dead this time!" Abaddon growled.

Bantus snarled back at him. "By all means, come and try it."


	23. Chapter 23

_Ch. 23_

"Holy crap!" Sun yelled as he dodged another shadow ball from one of the Ghouls. He and Blake decided to take on the ram horned one while Kathleen fought its brother.

"Sun, we have to hit it with its own smoke balls. Its weak to its own attacks, especially on the inside," Blake told him, remembering what happened last time at Mt. Glenn.

"Alright." Sun ran towards the Grimm, dodge rolling under a claw swipe and slid to its underbelly. There, he started pelting it with gunfire to get its attention.

The Ghoul roared and looked down at Sun. The monkey faunus smiled back at it and jumped back just in time to avoid a ground pound from one of the Ghoul's clawed hands. Blake chose this time to jump in its face and use Gambol Shroud in its sickle form to slash it multiple times, then stab her katana into its lower jaw to shoot at close range. She then jumped back and flipped until she was beside Sun. Their plan worked as the aggroed Grimm began to gather the fumes in its mouth into a large shadow ball and blasted it towards them.

"Sun!" Blake yelled.

"Here we go!" Sun made his weapons go back into staff form and held it like a baseball bat. "Batter up!"

Sun hit the shadow ball with all his strength, sending it back towards the Grimm and into its gaping mouth. And like its predecessor, the creature convulsed until its body fell to pieces. With that Ghoul dead, the duo turned their attention to Kathleen. Kathleen wasn't in much trouble, she dodge the attacks of the Ghoul with minimal effort all the while slashing its hide and punching holes in its body with her semblance. The Grimm did one last swipe, which Kathleen back flipped from, before it kneeled to the ground in pain.

"Wow, she's got it down all by herself," Sun said in astonishment.

" _I'll finish this in one last blow."_ Kathleen combined her Mortuus Concordiae into nodachi form and held it in its sheathe. Focusing on one point, Kathleen quickly and accurately dashed forward with a fast slashing technique. A moment later, the Ghoul's body was cut cleanly in half. She changed her nodachi back into dual form as Sun and Blake joined her.

"Nice!" Sun said.

"Thanks, but it's not over yet." Kathleen gazed over to Abaddon's battle.

Bantus and Abaddon fought in a flurry of punches, kicks, and blades. They had been fighting nonstop at a rapid pace, one never out pacing the other.

"Why don't you use that flashy power of yours wolfy? You could beat me easily with that," Bantus mused.

"Hehe, I could, but I had forgotten how much fun I always had when fighting you," said Abaddon.

Bantus slashed at Abaddon with his sword whip. Abaddon caught the blade in his hand and jerked it towards himself. Bantus was thrown forward towards Abaddon and used the momentum to aim a kick at the boy's head. Abaddon spun, the kick only grazing him, and slammed his right hand shield gauntlet into Bantus' chest. The lizard faunus went flying towards one of the shipment cranes. He lightly grabbed one of the support poles and spun around it, coming full circle until he came flying back at Abaddon with another kick. This time Bantus used both feet. Abaddon managed to block the blow, but it was powerful enough to push him back a few feet. Bantus flipped in the air before landing on his feet once more.

"Look at us. Evenly matched as usual," Bantus said.

"I'm not surprised," Abaddon replied.

As they were about to continue their battle, Kathleen, Blake, and Sun jumped in next to Abaddon with their weapons ready.

"Give it up Bantus, you're outnumbered," Blake said.

"I may be outnumbered, but not outclassed. Tell me, have any of you fought an Alpha Grimm before?" Bantus asked.

Blake noticed that he wasn't looking at them, but past them. She turned around only to see something she would've thought impossible to happen.

Blake tightened her grip on Gambol Shroud. "Guys, behind us!"

Everyone looked back to see the Ghoul that Kathleen defeated eating its own kin. It had managed to survive Kathleen's attack and crawled over to the other Ghoul, leaving a trail of what looked like black blood behind it.

"Since when do Grimm eat each other?!" Sun screamed.

Once the bisected Ghoul had finished devouring the other Grimm's remains, its body began to tremble. It began to grow in size until it was 2 times as big as before and regenerated its lower half. It grew two extra arms, had six red eyes, longer teeth and claws, and a tail. White spikes and armor grew along its back, knees, elbows, and tail. It also had 8 red slits going down its chest.

" _Damn, I was hoping not to see another one of these again,"_ Abaddon thought.

The transformed Ghoul roared at them, ready to pounce until the sound of a gunshot rang in the air and a sniper round hit the Ghoul's head. The round had no visible effect except moving the Grimm's head a little.

"Hey!" Everyone looked up to see Ruby standing on top of a nearby building wielding her Crescent Rose.

Bantus smiled at the new challenger. "Isn't past your bed time kid?"

"Ruby, are these people your friends?" Penny asked from behind Ruby.

"Penny get back," Ruby told her.

Unbeknownst to Ruby, the Ghoul had spit a shadow ball at her. She looked back in time to block it with her scythe, but the ball exploded, sending her flying to the ground. Seeing Ruby get hurt angered Penny and she stomped towards the edge of the roof.

"Penny wait! Stop!" Ruby yelled.

"Don't worry Ruby, I'm combat ready!" At her command, a pack on Penny's back opened up and a single sword flew out. It unfolded itself and multiplied into ten swords. She then jumped off the roof and onto the ground. More White Fang soldiers entered the area, only to be quickly felled by Penny. Everyone else watched the little girl's performance, surprised that she even had such fighting capabilities as her blades beat the soldiers down like they were nothing.

"Whoa!" Sun said.

"Lookout!" Abaddon pushed Sun out of the way as a shadow ball came careening towards them. Abaddon stopped it with his bare left hand and when it exploded the harmful fumes within expanded then shrunk until they were absorbed into Abaddon's hand.

"This Grimm is stronger than you think. Don't let your guard down." Abaddon's blades began to glow with light as he ran towards the Ghoul. Kathleen joined him, wanting to help in any way she can.

Meanwhile, three bullheads flew over and strafed the area with gunfire. Abaddon deployed his mega shield to cover him and Kathleen, Sun and Blake hid behind some crates, and Penny blocked some of the gunfire with her blades. She then deployed two more, which shot out of her backpack and embedded themselves into the building behind her. Using strings connected to the blades, Penny rocketed back to the wall then held her hands out in front of her as her blades spun in a circular tunnel formation. Green energy began to gather in that formation as Penny focused her aura into one point. Once done, she pumped her fists forward and released several beams of energy. Two of the bullheads were cut in half by the beams and fell into the water. Ruby gazed at what Penny had done in pure wonder.

The third bullhead tried to escape with a crate of dust, but Penny had embedded six of her blades into its body. As she stepped back, the ship began lurch down.

"Whooaa, how is she doing that?" Ruby asked herself.

With one hard pull, Penny made the bullhead crash into a stack of crates and explode.

" _This doesn't look good for me. There's too many huntsman, and with both Abaddon and that girl present I won't stand a chance in a full on fight, even with my Ghoul by my side. I'll have to retreat for now,"_ Bantus thought.

He turned to the Ghoul and yelled, "Smokescreen!"

At Bantus' command, the Ghoul opened its mouth wide and began spitting a huge gust of dark mist. The mist spread fast, covering the entirety of the docks and obscuring everyone's vision.

"Oh man," Sun coughed.

"He's trying to get away. We have to get out of this," Blake said.

Suddenly, the mist began to move. It was surging and swirling into one point until all of it disappeared into Abaddon's left hand.

Sun had to blink to make sure he was seeing things right. "Whoa, that was-."

"Wait, where's Bantus?" Blake interrupted.

Everyone looked up at the sound of two bullheads flying off, the Ghoul sitting on top of one of them. They could do nothing as it was already out of their reach.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

The sound of radio chatter could be heard as the local police closed off the docks for their investigation of the crime scene. The huntsmen in training were all questioned on the situation, but chose beforehand not to say anything about Bantus or the Ghoul. Afterwards, they sat down together on some crates whilst waiting for the rest of their friends.

Soon enough, Yang, Weiss, Emma, and Jurano walked onto the scene.

"Hey Abby," Emma jumped onto Abaddon's back like she usually did. "What happened here? Did you and Kat get into a fight without us?"

"Come on you two, you can't get all the action. First in the Emerald Forest, and now here?" Jurano whined.

"Whatever," Abaddon simply said.

As Weiss and Yang walked up to their teammates, Ruby stood up to confront Weiss. "Look Weiss, it's not what you think. She explained the whole thing. You see she doesn't actually have a bow. She has kitty ears and their actually kinda cute."

Weiss ignored Ruby and went up to Blake instead.

"Weiss. I want you to know that I'm no longer associated with the White Fang. Back when I was with-."

"Stop," Weiss said, interrupting Blake. "Do you have any idea of how long we've been searching for you?"

Blake didn't answer.

"Twelve hours," Weiss continued. "That means I've had twelve hours to think about this. And in that twelve hours, I've decided-."

Everyone else continued to stay silent, waiting for Weiss' decision.

"-I don't care."

"You don't care?" Blake asked.

"You said you're not one of them anymore right?" Weiss asked.

"No, I haven't been since I was younger-."

"Up, bup, bup, bup." Weiss interrupted Blake again. "I don't wanna hear it. All I want to know is that the next time something this big comes up, you come to your teammates, and not some…someone else."

Blake wiped a tear away from her face. "Of course."

"Yeah, team RWBY is back together!" Ruby cheered.

"Thank goodness," Jurano said. "I thought Weiss was going to screw everything up."

"Hey!" Weiss whined.

"Just voicing my opinion ice queen," Jurano said with a bow.

"You know, I'm actually kinda proud of you Weiss," Abaddon said, earning a small smile from the ice queen.

"Hey Abaddon, how do you know Bantus Sanguin?" Blake asked.

"Who?" Emma asked.

"Bantus is the lizard faunus that we fought at the docks before you guys got here," Kathleen said.

"He's not just a lizard faunus, he's a komodo dragon faunus," Blake told them.

Everyone's eyes opened wide in disbelief.

"Wait, wait, wait, the komodo dragons were a faunus clan that was exterminated years ago due to their extremely violent and predatory behavior," Sun chimed in. "How can he be one?"

"Because Bantus' parents sacrificed themselves for him to live, but their deaths along with the others mentally scarred him," Abaddon explained. "Afterwards, he joined the White Fang under Adam's jurisdiction and became their best torturer. Bantus himself told me that during our third fight several years ago."

"Torturer?" Yang asked. "That's a bit much."

"I know. And he's a great fighter to boot. I'm surprised Blake and Sun were able to hold out like they did. It looks like he didn't even use his semblance on you," said Abaddon.

"Hey, I didn't use my semblance either," Sun added to boost his confidence.

"I had forgotten what his semblance was," Blake frowned.

"It's called intangibility," Abaddon explained. "It allows him to become temporarily intangible so he can pass through physical objects and attacks. Although, he can still be hit by dust and energy attacks."

"And what about that Grimm that was with him? You said it was a Ghoul," Kathleen said.

"There was a Grimm here?!" Emma screamed.

"No way," Yang said.

"Shut up Emma. We can't let the authorities know or else there'll be a panic," Abaddon said, covering the girl's mouth. "Yes, those Grimm are called Ghouls. It was the same kind that injured Ruby on your mission. The larger version that we saw tonight was a Mega Ghoul. They're like Alpha Beowulves and Ursa Majors, but more dangerous thanks to the stronger shadow fumes that come out of their bodies and the fact that they can regenerate their limbs."

"Grimm that can regenerate! That's impossible," Weiss huffed.

"No, it is very possible. The first Mega Ghoul that I fought regenerated its arms after Cinder had cut them off," he continued. "Their heads don't regenerate though, so that's an upside. Although, I don't know how Bantus was able to summon them with his screeching. They're Grimm, they can't be controlled."

Ruby put a hand on Abaddon's shoulder. "Maybe we should keep our eyes open from now on. Whatever clues we find will help us get to the bottom of this in the future."


	24. Chapter 24

_Ch. 24_

After that day, the huntsmen in training had no time to investigate thanks to studying for semester finals. They all decided to just pick up where they left off after the start of the next semester and informed team MNCE of their plan. Many students stayed on campus during the holidays as the snow quickly settled in, covering the school grounds in a nearly two foot deep blanket of white.

"Scoot overrrr," Neo whined. She sat in Abaddon's lap with a blanket in a recliner near a fireplace. They, along with their friends, were hanging out in their dorm building's common room. It was a large room filled with recliners, chairs, and sofas for students to relax in along with wooden tables and lamps for studying. There were pictures of past star students, headmasters, and teachers on the walls along with the symbol of Vale sitting above the fireplace. Emerald was playing another game of Remnant with Mercury, Cinder was messing with some dust woven cloth, Jurano and Yang were listening to music from his scroll, Ruby was eating a plate of cookies in another recliner, Weiss was asleep along with Emma on one of the couches, and Kathleen lay asleep in a chair across from Abaddon with a blanket over her.

"How am I supposed to scoot when you're in my lap Neo?" Abaddon adjusted himself in his blanket to make Neo more comfortable.

"Glad this semester's tests are finally over," Ruby said from her chair.

"Tell me about it. I thought I was gonna have a heart attack when I got my grade back for Oobleck's test," Mercury told them.

"At least we passed." Emerald placed one of her cards on the game board and smiled. She could tell it was a good move from the surprised look on Mercury's face.

"Yeah, now I just wanna relax." Neo slowly started to fall asleep. She snuggled even deeper into Abaddon's blanket, almost disappearing into the large brown cloth.

" _I'm just glad that I hid your bag of snacks, otherwise you'd be full of energy right now_ ," Abaddon thought. He then felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around his neck from behind.

"You know, I can keep you warm too if you'd like." Cinder's lips were terribly close to Abaddon's ear.

"Cin stop."

"We're missing someone," she whispered.

Abaddon looked around and noticed that their cat faunus was nowhere to be seen.

"I thought she was with us," Abaddon whispered back.

"No, it seems she split off as we were coming here. She looked troubled," Cinder said. "If I had to guess, the best place to look would be either her dorm or the library."

Abaddon was about to say something to Yang, since she was Blake's partner but decided to fix the problem himself. "I'll go talk to her then."

"Wait," Cinder said. "Maybe we should let her be for now. And if it gets out of hand, it would be best for her teammates to speak with her."

Abaddon wanted to help Blake, but decided to take Cinder's advice instead.

"Fine, I'll leave it alone. For now."

"Good." Cinder then began moving her lips along Abaddon's cheek. "Now how about we have a tiny bit of fun, for old time's sake?"

Much to her disappointment, Abaddon moved his head away from her. "First of all, in your dreams. Second of all, there are children present."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

 _Over a week into the second semester…_

"Come in," Ozpin said as he heard the beeping sound of someone requesting to access his quarters.

The doors to his office opened up to reveal none other than James Ironwood, one of the generals of Atlas.

"Ozpin!"

"Hello general," Ozpin replied.

"Please, drop the formalities." Ironwood and Ozpin gingerly shook hands. "It's been too long. And Glynda, it has certainly been too long since we last met."

"Ohh James. I'll be outside." Glynda then left the office, leaving the two men alone to speak.

"Well she hasn't changed a bit," said Ironwood.

"So what in the world has brought you all the way down from Atlas? I would usually expect Heracles to be here, given his love for battle." Ozpin went over to his desk and picked up a pitcher, filling one of the mugs he kept with coffee and handing it to Ironwood.

"Well I do love Vale this time of year, and who's to say that I don't love to see a good show just as Heracles does." Ironwood took a quick sip from his mug.

"I hope there aren't any troubles in Atlas, James," Ozpin said.

"None that we can't take care of. Don't worry Ozpin," Ironwood assured him.

"Hmmm. If you say so." Ozpin refilled his mug and took a sip.

"Thank you. Now, I should be going. Good to see you again Ozpin." Ironwood placed his mug back on Ozpin's desk and walked towards the elevator. Before the doors closed he gave the headmaster one last nod.

Ozpin went back to gazing outside his office window at the school grounds. " _I know what you're searching for James, but he already has it. I had hoped my students wouldn't have to fight a war, but one has been fighting an unfinished bout which I hope does not end badly. For us and for him."_

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"Shit!"

Abaddon dug his sword into the ground as a powerful wind gust blew over him. It wasn't hard to keep his balance, but one mishap and he could easily lose his weapon. He looked up just in time to dodge a slash from Kathleen's swords, then grabbed her wrist and threw her to the left. She flipped in midair and landed on her feet, regaining her composure.

"You're getting better Abaddon," Kathleen said.

"Thanks Kat," Abaddon replied. "At least you're not going easy on me, like usual."

"Weeelllll, I'm not actually going all out right now."

"Aww come on!" Abaddon sheathed his sword and took off his gauntlets. "Alright, how about hand to hand, but no holding back Kat! Come at me!"

Kathleen sighed. "Ok partner, but just to let you know," Kathleen immediately disappeared and reappeared beside the boy. "You might regret it."

Abaddon barely managed to block a kick from his right. He countered with a kick to Kathleen's left side, but she flipped over it. She ducked down and tripped him with a low kick. Abaddon flipped back to right himself and dashed at her. With his left leg pulled back, Kathleen was prepared to block, but it was a feint and she was hit full force with a right hook. Abaddon then followed up with a right brazilian kick to the girl's right leg and torso. He would've struck her in the shoulder if Kathleen hadn't kneed him in the stomach. She then jumped back to gain some distance. She was a bit out of breath.

" _Maybe, today will be the second time. The second time I actually beat her!"_ Abaddon's body felt excited just thinking about it.

He put up his fists to guard any surprising attacks. Meanwhile, Kathleen took a deep breath then exhaled to focus. Once done, she quickly rushed towards her partner. Abaddon dodged a high kick that was aimed for his head. When it looked like she was about to do a reverse kick, Abaddon put up both arms to block it, but Kathleen instead used that leg to push down his arms and lower his guard. Next, she struck him in the face with a 360 degree kick. This made the boy falter a few steps. He intended to strike back with a kick of his own, but Kathleen had bent down below him. She reached up with one leg to wrap around his neck and bounced into the air, spinning him around wildly before dropping him headfirst into the ground.

Kathleen stood and dusted herself off. "Told you so."

"Let's…keep…going." Abaddon clumsily stood up from the small crater he was in. His aura had completely reached zero, but he still wanted to keep sparring. "Come on…Kat."

He almost fell to his knees, but Kathleen caught him before he could.

"I didn't realize I got you that bad. Your aura's completely drained and you can barely focus." Kathleen helped him stand up straight.

Abaddon sighed. "Fine. As usual, you right. Let's go get something to eat please."

"Sure thing." Kathleen held on to Abaddon's left arm in order to help him keep his balance as he walked. They picked up their weapons and headed out of the gym and towards their dorm room. As they walked, Kathleen noticed the way she was holding Abaddon's arm and couldn't help but blush. It was like they had just came back from a date.

The duo made it to their dorm. Inside, they found it empty. Kathleen sat Abaddon on his bed and laid their weapons on hers.

"I'll see what they're cooking in the cafeteria while you stay and rest okay?" Kathleen gently stroked Abaddon's tail before she left. She closed the door behind her and started to walk down the hall when she spotted Cinder nearby.

"Oh, hello Kathleen," Cinder said with a smile.

"Hey Cinder."

"Where are you headed?" she asked.

"I'm going to the cafeteria to get some food for me and Abaddon. I kind of went over board during our sparring match…again," Kathleen said.

"So he's resting then. Perhaps I could watch him while you're gone?" Cinder's smile was friendly, but Kathleen wasn't getting a good vibe from it.

"Thanks, but he'll be fine until I get back. Besides, I don't think he's in the mood for unnecessary flirting right now," Kathleen replied with a smile of her own. "Well, I'll see you later Cinder."

Cinder watched silently as Kathleen strolled off on her task, then went in the opposite direction.

" _Wow, she really adores him. And I can tell from what she just said that maybe I've struck a nerve. Should I apologize to her?"_ Cinder's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a nearby conversation. It was coming from team RWBY's room. Unable to halt her curiosity, Cinder quietly walked over to the door and stood with her back to the wall. She began to focus on the discussion being held inside.

"Ok, between blowing up night clubs, stopping thieves, and fighting for freedom, I'm sure the three of you think you're all ready to go out and apprehend these ne'er-do-wells." Cinder recognized this as Weiss' voice.

"Uhh, who?" said another voice, clearly Ruby's.

"But let me once again be the voice of reason. We're students. We're not ready to handle this sort of situation," Weiss reasoned.

"Well yeah, but-," Ruby tried to say.

"We're not ready!" Weiss exclaimed.

"And we may never be ready!" Blake said. "Our enemies aren't just gonna sit around and wait for graduation day. They're out there, somewhere, planning their next move and none of us know what it is but it's coming, whether we're ready or not."

" _She makes a good point,"_ Cinder thought.

"Okay," said Ruby. "All in favor of becoming the youngest huntresses to single handedly bring down a corrupt organization conspiring against the kingdom of Vale, say I."

"Yes! I love it when you're feisty," Yang added.

"Hmph, I suppose it could be fun," said Weiss.

"None of you said I," Ruby said in disappointment.

"Alright then, we're all in this together." Blake's tone came out happier than before.

"Let's hatch a plan!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Yeah!" Yang agreed.

Ruby gasped. "I left my board game in the library."

"Were doomed," Weiss said.

Cinder choose this time to step back from the door as Ruby ran out of her dorm and towards the library. Luckily, Cinder was on the side of the door that blocked her from view.

"Hmm, I hope they know what they're doing," Cinder said to herself. "Although, it's better safe than sorry, so they won't mind if a few friends 'tag a long' on their investigation."


	25. Chapter 25

_Ch. 25_

 _The next day…_

Abaddon paced back and forth. "Are they really serious with this?!"

"I'm not surprised. Considering what you informed me about Blake's past and what happened at the docks, I'm not surprised Blake and her team would come up with such an idea," Cinder told him.

They were in Cinder's team dorm room. Everyone else was in the cafeteria for lunch. Cinder had chosen this time to drag Abaddon away and tell him about what she had heard the other day from team RWBY.

"I know. But why not tell us about it? Me, you, and Neo could be of great help to them," Abaddon wondered.

"Maybe they want to prove that they're capable of doing this on their own. What do you suggest we do?"

Abaddon scratched his head. "Hmm, we should go with them, just us two. I'd rather not bring our teammates this time, especially Neo."

"Agreed." Cinder nodded. "With Bantus involved, Neo _definitely_ shouldn't come."

"Did they say when they were going to start their investigation?"

"Not that I know of. I didn't wait for Ruby to come back. But, they would most likely go out during the weekend. This Friday would be the best bet."

Abaddon smiled. "Good. Then after our classes end we go with them."

"Whether they like or not," Cinder added.

 _XXXXXXX_

 _Friday afternoon…_

"Blah, blablah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blaahh…"

Professor Port's speeches always registered in Weiss' mind as nothing more than inconsistent blabbing. Although, there was another voice she was also ignoring at the same time.

"So Weiss, ya'know, uh, I was thinking after this maybe we could go grab a bite to eat?" Jaune asked. "And, uh, I-I've got two tickets to that new Spruce Willis movie if you wanna make the trip to Vale. I hear it's awesome. Aaaand then maybe after that we could study together? I mean you're smart and I'm, uh, ya'know."

 _Beep! Beep!_

The alarm rang meaning that it was four o'clock, the end of class.

"And then I-," Port stopped when he realized what time it was. "Oh, uhh, timed that one wrong I guess. Well, the stunning conclusion to this story will have to wait. Until next time."

"Seems like its time," Cinder said to Abaddon as they saw RWBY stroll past a clearly disappointed Jaune.

Abaddon smiled. "Alright, let's go."

Later in team RWBY's room, everyone got geared up for the operation. They stocked their weapons and changed into outfits very different from their normal ones. Weiss wore her Snow Pea outfit, Yang's was called Hunter, Ruby's was Slayer, and Blake's was named Intruder.

"I thought that class would never end," Blake complained.

"Alright guys, todays the day. The investigation begins!" Ruby happily hopped off her bed and landed in front of Weiss.

Weiss recoiled back to avoided being stepped on. "I'm glad to see were taking this so seriously."

"Hey, we've got a plan…that's…moderately serious," Yang added.

"Right! Everyone remember their roles?" Ruby asked.

Weiss spoke first. "You and I will head to the CCT to check the Schnee records for any other dust robberies or inconsistencies. Seeing as I'm in the family, it shouldn't be a problem."

Next was Blake. "The White Fang has regular faction meetings to hand out orders and recruit new members. If I can get in, I can hopefully find out what they're planning."

Then last was Yang. "I have an old friend on the shady side of town that typically knows everything going on in Vale. Getting information out of him shouldn't be too hard."

"Great, well meet up tonight near Yang to go over what we found. Let's do this!" Ruby declared.

"Yeah!" All four girls turned to see Sun hanging upside down outside their window. They immediately jumped back in surprise.

"Sun! How did you get up there?" Yang asked him.

"Ah it's easy. I do it all the time," he replied.

"You do what?!" Weiss exclaimed.

"I climb trees all the time," Sun responded, but Weiss didn't look convinced.

Sun jumped into the room. "So are we finally getting back at that Bantus guy?"

" _We_ are going to investigate the situation… _as a team_ ," Blake explained.

"Sorry Sun, we don't wanna get friends involved if we don't have to," Ruby added.

"Pfft, that's dumb. You should always get friends involved. That's why I brought Neptune." As if on que, a black and white clawed hand entered the window carrying said boy.

"Sup," said Neptune as the hand let go of him.

"Dude, what is that?!" Sun asked.

"I know, it's weird. Looks like were not the only ones who want in on this," Neptune said.

Then, both Abaddon and Cinder swung into the room from above the window.

"Abaddon? Cinder? What are you two doing here?" Ruby asked.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. You thought you could go messing with those bastards without us?" Abaddon chuckled. "You guys know damn well we're needed here."

"Cute outfits by the way girls," Cinder said.

"Like I just said, we didn't want to get friends involved if we don't have to," Ruby repeated.

"Well, now we've got 5 huntsmen in training, an ex-White Fang, and two former vigilantes. That should be more than enough to cover your asses," Abaddon said with a smile.

"We're well aware of that," Weiss added.

"You're all here now, so let's decide who goes with whom," Ruby said. "Alright, I'll go with Weiss and Cinder, Sun and Abaddon, you can go with Blake, and Neptune you can go with Yang since she doesn't have a partner. Everyone good?"

"Actually Ruby, why don't you go with Yang?" Weiss suggested. "After all, she is your sister."

"But, who else would go with you and Cinder then?" Ruby asked confused.

"Well, I guess Cinder could go with you and Yang while Neptune comes with me," Weiss said.

Ruby laughed in response. "Nah."

But before Ruby could leave with Weiss, Abaddon pulled her back by her hood.

"Hold on little red, let me fix this real quick. Neptune, you go with Weiss and Ruby because I _need_ to go with Yang to make sure she behaves around her 'old friend.' Cinder, you go with Blake and Sun. While they're inside the recruitment meeting, you snoop around for anything suspicious they may have in store. Okay, no questions please, we got things to do."

 _XXXXXXX_

"Wooow! I forget how big the transit tower looks up close!" Ruby exclaimed in uncontained excitement. She stood in front of the CCT, a gigantic tower, with Neptune and Weiss alongside her.

"You should see the one in Atlas," Weiss

"That was the first one right?"

"Correct," Weiss replied. "Atlas developed the Cross Continental Transmit system to allow the four kingdoms to communicate with one another. It was their gift to the world after the great war."

"Oh, look at me. My name is Weiss. I know facts. I'm rich," Ruby giggled.

"Really?" said Neptune.

"Don't be a pest. Besides, the only reason were here is because you like the tower so much. We could've just as easily made a call from the library."

"I know but it's so cool! Oh, I'm gonna take a picture!" Ruby fumbled with her scroll and ended up dropping it. It bounced on the ground until it landed at someone's feet.

"Oh. You dropped this," said Penny as she held Ruby's scroll.

"Penny?!" Ruby said surprised.

Penny's eyes went wide. "Uhhhh."

"Where have you been? We haven't seen you since the night at the docks," Ruby said.

"Sorry, I-I think you are confused," Penny replied as she tried to avoid Ruby's question. She hiccupped, causing her to toss the scroll into Ruby's hands. "I've got to go."

Neptune raised an eyebrow. "Wow. Well, she was strange."

"What was that about?" Weiss wondered.

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out. You go make your call with Neptune. I'll meet up with you guys later." Ruby ran off after Penny, leaving Weiss and Neptune alone.

"I guess it's just you and me now snow angel," Neptune mused.

" _Just the way I like it,"_ Weiss thought.

"Shall we?" Neptune nodded in the direction of the CCT.

"Of course." Weiss walked into the CCT with Neptune beside her.

Neptune whistled at the sight. "This looks a little wider than the one in Mistral."

"Oh really? I should take a look at that someday," Weiss said. "What's it like in Mistral?"

"Oh, it's nice like it is here in Vale. But I think I like it here better. I favor the city life," Neptune told her.

"Well, maybe after this we could, I don't know, explore some of the city?" Weiss asked.

"That'd be pretty cool," Neptune replied.

They entered the elevator that would take them upstairs.

" _Hello, welcome to the CCT. How may I help you?"_

"I'd like to go to the communications room please," Weiss said.

" _Absolutely. Could you please place your scroll on the terminal to verify your identity?"_

Weiss held up her scroll to the terminal as instructed.

" _Perfect. Thank you Ms. Schnee."_

As the elevator ascended, Neptune caught sight of Weiss making weird faces.

"What're you doing Weiss?" Neptune asked.

"Huh? Oh nothing, just trying to put on a good smile is all," Weiss sighed.

"Hmm, family problems?" Neptune guessed.

"No, no, no. Everything's alright. I just like to have…a bright smile for my father," she lied.

The elevator doors opened as they reached the communications room. "I'll contact the Schnee Dust Company and get the intel I need. Then afterwards, we can probably grab a smoothie."


	26. Chapter 26

_Ch. 26_

 _Downtown Vale…_

"So was it Blake that made you girls come up with this plan?" Abaddon asked.

He held on to Yang as they rode through the city at night on Bumblebee. Yang drove surprisingly fast on her bike, and had the tendency to zoom through tight spots between cars.

"Yeah, she felt like we needed to get to the bottom of what the White Fang were planning. It bothered her to no end," Yang explained. "By the way Fido, how come you're not going on a hunting spree, considering how much you hate them?"

"Well, remember the main reasons I quit hunting for them at that time was not only because I couldn't get my hands on Adam, but also at the request of my parents. They feared that my quest for revenge would consume me and ultimately get me killed. So I stopped and promised that if I found anything about the White Fang I should report it to my grandfather to let him deal with it. I tried calling him several times to inform him about our recent encounters with the Fang, but he hasn't answered at all," Abaddon told her.

"Damn, hopefully he'll call back soon. I'm sure he's just a busy man," Yang said, trying to give Abaddon a bit of support. "Oh! Were here!"

Turning a corner and coming to a complete stop the duo had arrived at Junior's club. Yang took off her helmet as she and Abaddon got off Bumblebee and walked through the front doors. They strolled down the hallway until they met the henchmen who usually stand by the entrance. The henchmen immediately opened the door to let them in.

"Hmm, feels different from last time," Yang said.

"That's because I'm here with you. If you had come alone, then these guys would've gone on alert real quick," Abaddon said.

Yang smiled. "True, true."

The interior was empty this time with no guests and Junior's henchmen mulled about either doing nothing or moving things around. Abaddon and Yang went towards Junior who was standing in the middle of the dance floor talking to the Malachite twins.

"Hey Junior, how ya been?" Abaddon asked.

"Heyyy, you made it." Junior and Abaddon shook hands. "Come to the bar so we can talk."

"How did he know we were coming?" Yang asked.

"I called him while you were getting your bike ready. I didn't want to interrupt him if he was doing business at this hour," Abaddon answered.

They followed Junior to the bar and took their seats. The Malachite twins gave them two glasses and filled them up.

"We gave you the same drinks you had last time," Militia said plainly.

"Thanks girls." Yang happily took a quick sip from her glass.

"Thanks again for the other night. Same for you… _Blondie_." Junior had to put effort into saying that, which made Yang giggle. "I've already got to watch out for police, I don't wanna have the White Fang on my tail either."

"Your welcome Junior," Abaddon said. "Now, tell us what you've found so far."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

Blake traced her fingers across three claw marks that were on the wall of the alley. She peeked around the corner and saw two faunus talking to a gentleman guarding a door.

"This is it," Blake said.

Cinder peeked around the corner too. "Perfect."

"You sure?" Sun asked, earning a glare from both girls. "You know what, I'm just gonna take your word for it."

"So while you two go in, I'll look around for clues," Cinder told them.

"Got it." Sun gave her a thumbs up and Blake nodded.

Using her dust manipulation, Cinder's clothing instantly changed from her red dress and heels into a black infiltration outfit consisting of a sleeveless jacket, long gloves, stiletto heel boots, a black glass mask, and straps lined with several containers. Then, she jumped onto the roof of a nearby building and was gone.

Blake took off her bow as she and Sun entered the building, following the last couple that just entered. The doorman gave them masks on their way in.

"I don't get it. If you believe what you're doing is right, why hide who you are?" Sun asked Blake.

"The masks our symbol. Humanity wanted to make monsters out of us, so we chose to don the faces of monsters," Blake explained.

"Grimm masks. That's kinda dark," Sun said.

"So was the guy who started it," Blake replied.

Sun sighed. "Always sunshine and rainbows with you."

They donned their masks and entered a large room where many faunus and White Fang were gathered near a stage and a black curtain was hung with the Fang's red symbol on it. Sun and Blake joined the crowd as they waited for the meeting to start.

"Thank you all for coming." Lieutenant Corvus paced slowly back and forth across the stage as he greeted everyone. "Allow me to introduce two very special comrades of ours. I can assure you, they are the key to obtaining what we have fought for, for so long."

From behind the curtain came someone new, a middle aged man with pale skin and brownish black hair tied in a small ponytail. He wore a dark trench coat over a grey long sleeved button down shirt, a brown tie, black pants, brown hiking boots, grey gloves, and rectangular glasses. And following close behind him was none other than Bantus.

"Thank you my friend. It is a pleasure to be here." The unknown man spoke with a light accent.

"What's a human doing here?!" a faunus yelled.

"Good question. I am Doctor Verruckter Wissenschhaftler, a doctor and profound scientist. Yes, I am human. No, I do not like it. Why? Because we humans are so weak compared to you. Look at you all, you beautiful creatures. You are capable of so much more than we are. But I understand why you would want to see us humans locked up, tortured, maybe even perish. Here's where we have a common enemy my friends. The ones governing our kingdoms, our lives. The government, the military, the schools, authority are all to blame for your suffering. They keep you down because they want be in control. And why is that? Because they fear you. And humans always destroy what they fear most. Just look at my friend here. He is most likely the last komodo dragon left, all because humanity was afraid of their potential." The doctor's words were riling the faunus in the room. They cheered in admiration of what he said while Sun and Blake worriedly looked at one another.

"Humans are pests, just waiting for a good ass wake up call," Bantus added. "Unfortunately for them, we have the right toys to use for that." Bantus snapped his finger and the curtain fell down, revealing a giant mech. The sight of it made the faunus applaud even louder.

"Uhhh, that's a big robot," said Sun.

"How did he get that?" Blake asked.

"As you may have noticed, this giant tin can is part of Atlas' newest arsenal to get rid of all the scary things in the world. And thanks to the good doctor here, we've managed to snag a few ourselves from right under their noses. Now, many of your comrades have moved down to our new operation in the southeast. If you wanna stay in Vale, that's fine, but if you're truly ready to fight for what you believe in, this is the arsenal we can provide you. Any questions people?" As soon as Bantus finished, the crowd went wild with cheering and chanting.

"We should get out of here," Blake told Sun.

"All new recruits, please come forward." All the faunus near Blake and Sun started to move toward Corvus whilst still cheering to their hearts content.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"So these four criminals haven't been active lately at all?" Abaddon asked.

"No, none of my boys have seen them for a while," Junior answered. "But what would they want with so much dust?"

"That's were trying to find out," Yang said. "Did you find anything else?"

"Well, I had to pay some lien to get this info, but one of my clients informed me about a big shipment that the White Fang have been bringing through Vale. He says it's not dust this time and he couldn't get close enough with all the troops they have, but whatever it is, it's big," Junior said.

"Did he tell you where their shipment is going or coming from?" Abaddon asked.

"He knew, but he wanted too much lien for that information," Junior said.

"Then go pay him," Yang ordered. "It shouldn't be that much."

Junior glared at her. "Shut up blondie. You say that because you don't own a business."

"Well, I'm thankful for what you've told me so far. If we can find where their keeping their shit, then we'll probably find those dust robbers and get some answers. Let's go Yang." Both he and Yang stood up to leave. "Also, Junior, how much did you pay for that intel?"

"Like 150 lien," Junior answered.

Abaddon reached into his pocket and pulled out some of his own lien. He placed it on the counter in front of the man. Junior picked up the money and counted it.

"160 lien."

"Wow, thanks a lot kid." Junior pocketed the cash. "And good luck."

Abaddon gave Junior a thumbs up. "Thanks. I might need it."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"So what made you choose this place?" Neptune took another sip from his frosted blueberry smoothie.

"I've just been here before with friends." Weiss gave Neptune a cute smile before also taking another sip of her frosted white cherry smoothie. She had taken Neptune to the same burger joint that Yang had brought her and their friends to weeks ago. Luckily for her, it was a slow night and they got a table on the outside patio with very few people around them. It wasn't a five star restaurant, but she had to admit it was pretty nice.

"I didn't think you would be into this type of scenery. No offense," Neptune said.

"None taken. It's just that when you're treated to the classiest of meals every day, you don't often think of visiting such places," Weiss sighed.

"I see," said Neptune. "Back in Mistral I would usually relax at a coffee shop by myself to read a book since Sun gets bored easily and talks so much. He once even threw a couple of banana peels at me when I was trying to ignore him."

Weiss giggled. "That sounds like how my partner would act if I were in that situation, childish."

"Ya'know, I thought we were supposed to be taking this mission seriously," Neptune said.

"Yeah, but who says we can't relax a little," Weiss replied. "I'm sure the others are fine anyway."


	27. Chapter 27

_Ch. 27_

"Oh no."

Cinder broke into one of the warehouses via an open window. After knocking out three White Fang soldiers, she found what they were hiding: Atlesian Paladins. Enough for a small army.

" _This isn't the only warehouse nearby. No telling how many they have in total."_ She kept trying to wrap her head around the situation when she heard a loud crash outside.

"Good evening fraulein." Cinder turned her head to see a middle-aged man looking at her from atop one of the unopened supply crates.

Cinder quickly assembled her dust swords. "Who are you?"

"I am Doctor Verruckter. And I've found my first test dummy," he said.

"Excuse me?!" Cinder replied, clearly offended.

"Oh my, I'm sorry. Let me explain. We have yet to test these machines' effectiveness on the field for ourselves. That is until one of our operatives went after two little rats that were spying on the recruitment meeting, hence the loud noise you heard earlier.

Cinder frowned. " _He must be referring to_ _Sun and Blake."_

"But being the scientist that I am, I decided to create my own version of the Paladin. I call it, the Xanthelus! Now I can test its full capabilities against live huntsman!" The doctor stepped backwards and fell into the crate.

Cinder backed up towards the main entrance of the building, pressing a red button on the wall to open the large metal entrance door. Once the walls of the crate fell and she saw the Xanthelus itself, she quickly closed the entrance back and ran full speed after her companions.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

Sun and Blake were jumping from rooftop to rooftop as the Paladin continued to chase them. They had been caught by Bantus at the meeting and managed to escape the building, but not him.

"So, you wouldn't happen to have, oh I don't know, some form of backup?!" Sun exclaimed.

"On it," Blake told him.

Weiss and Neptune were the first ones to receive the call.

" _Everyone, we need backu-!"_

" _Heeellllppp!"_

Next was Ruby.

" _They've got a robot. And its big, really big!"_

Ruby smiled. "Oh, I am not missing this!"

Then Yang and Abaddon.

" _That Bantus guy is in it, or like its in he and, he's like controlling it or something!"_

"Where are you guys?" Yang asked.

Her answer came when Blake and Sun ran by with the Paladin right behind them. "Hurrryyyy!"

"Aww shit, lets go!" Abaddon cheered.

"Got it!" Yang revved up Bumblebee's engine and drove after them.

Meanwhile, Blake and Sun jumped onto a busy highway, leaping from car to car while Bantus merely charged through. Abaddon and Yang caught up on Bumblebee along with Weiss and Neptune who were using one of Weiss' glyphs as a speeding platform.

"Isn't that Atlesian tech?" Weiss asked.

"Sure is. Looks like they stepped up production," Abaddon replied.

"Everyone look out!" Yang screamed. The cars that Bantus had flung in the air from the chase were now tumbling towards them. The four huntsmen managed to evade the chaos without any injury. As soon as they were clear, someone landed on Abaddon's back.

"Cinder! Welcome to the party!" Abaddon said when he looked back.

"Look what's here to crash it!" Cinder looked behind her. The others followed her gaze to see another mech like the Paladin, but much more humanlike in shape. It was slender and taller, had thicker looking armor, and had the same number of guns along with a large chain gun on its back. And it was gaining fast!

"What the hell is that?!" Neptune exclaimed.

"It's a heavily modified Paladin, piloted by a White Fang scientist. He calls it the Xanthelus," Cinder told them. "Abaddon, you think we can take it down?"

"Sure we can. The bigger they, the harder they fall." Abaddon jumped off Yang's bike and began gliding three feet above the ground, three small white wings emanating from his back. "Cinder and I will take this one. You guys get the Paladin."

Cinder jumped onto Abaddon's back again and they turned to face the Xanthelus. As they approached it, the robot tried to grab Cinder but she jumped over its hand and fired three arrows at its chest. They exploded on impact, causing it to lose balance. Abaddon added insult to injury by detonating a ball of twilight energy on the mechs left side, sending it tumbling over the edge of the highway. The Xanthelus landed on the ground below a while before the Paladin landed near it.

Team RWBY faced the Paladin while Abaddon and Cinder faced the Xanthelus.

"Where are Neptune and Sun?" Abaddon asked.

"They got knocked off somewhere else," Yang replied. "Don't worry, they'll be fine."

The Xanthelus armed its chain gun and began revving it up. The Paladin started charging its cannons.

"Ice Flower!"

Ruby and Blake leapt back while Weiss used dust to coat the ground in ice. Yang jumped into the air and came back down, smashing her fist into the ice. The combination created a mist over the battlefield, obscuring the vision of both mechs. The Paladin walked forward with red dot sensors scanning the area around it. The Xanthelus stayed at the Paladin's back, its head looking left and right as it scanned the area as well. The huntsmen dashed around in the fog, ready to strike at a moments notice. As the fog slightly faded, Abaddon chose this time to attack. He hit the Paladin first with a twilight enhanced punch then hit the Xanthelus in the back of the head with a kick of the same nature. The boy leapt back into cover before the mechs could recover and retaliate. Ruby suddenly rushed in and slashed the front of the Paladin. Weiss and Blake followed her lead, assaulting the mech's legs with their blades. Weiss even managed to stab one of the front sensors with her rapier. She jumped back and used a glyph to help Blake before she could get squashed.

The Paladin switched places with the Xanthelus, who began firing its chain gun. Weiss used her glyphs once more increase their speed as they retreated from the rain of bullets coming their way. Unbeknownst to the Xanthelus, Cinder had launched herself into the air and landed on the mech's arm. She stabbed both her blades into the ammo belt of the chain gun, then added fire dust into the chamber. She retreated before the gun exploded from the inside. With its best weapon inoperable, the Xanthelus replaced the ruined gun with its arm cannons and shoulder mounted missile launchers. Both mechs fired missile barrages at the huntsmen. Weiss put a time dilation glyph under Blake's feet, increasing her speed and reaction time. The faunus destroyed the barrage by sending out waves of aura through her blades to cut the missiles in half. Abaddon followed her example, unleashing a barrage of waves of his own.

"Isn't this fun?!" Abaddon cheered as Blake sent two last waves through the missiles and crashing into the Xanthelus shoulders. The mech fell back onto its comrade who lost its balance from the burden laying against it.

"Heeyah!" Yang rushed forward onto the pair and began repeatedly blasting both mechs with her gauntlets, hoping to break them down from her assault. Unfortunately, the Paladin deployed its fists, managed to grab Yang, and dashed forward to smash her through several highway support pillars. The Xanthelus stood up and used jets mounted in its back to quickly charge into Yang as she fell, sending her through the remains of the last pillar.

"Yang!" Blake yelled in worry.

"Don't worry, with each hit she gets stronger," Ruby said, "and she uses that energy to fight back. That's what makes her special."

Yang stood back up with her hair glowing and eyes red as the Paladin walked towards her. It sent its right fist forward, but with her semblance powering her up, Yang destroyed the entire arm in one hit. The Paladin tried again with its left fist, only for it to get destroyed as well. The mech moved to kick Yang, but Abaddon jumped in the way with his mega shield deployed. The attack pushed him into Yang and they both went flying.

"Bumblebee!" At Ruby's queue, Blake threw her sickle to Yang. The blonde caught it and Blake used her ribbon to swing Yang back towards the Paladin. Although, it jumped back before she could do damage. The Xanthelus made a move to grab Yang as she swung back around. Abaddon dashed in once again, shield bashing the Xanthelus away from his friend.

"Cinder, we have to keep the Xanthelus off RWBY, so they can finish off the Paladin!" Abaddon deconstructed his shield. Cinder came right beside him and notched three arrows covered in fire dust. Abaddon put a hand on her bow, applying his light to the arrows. Cinder then fired all three into the ground at the mechs feet. There was a screeching noise before the small area between the arrows exploded. The Xanthelus became consumed in a mass of white fire.

With their opponent hindered, the duo watched as RWBY destroyed the Paladin, the impact from Yang's fist shattering it into pieces. Bantus tumbled out of wreckage with his usual smile adorning his face.

"Well damn, that was great! Let's keep going!" Bantus unsheathed his daggers, ready for more.

Yang reloaded her gauntlets and fired two blasts at the dragon, but he dodged them. He sprinted towards Yang first. With her power increased by her semblance, he was hoping to have even more fun with her. Although, one of Abaddon's shadow arms grabbed him before he could reach the blonde and threw him further away.

"If your fighting anyone, its going to be me and me only. I told you I'd make you good and dead, didn't I?" Abaddon cracked his knuckles and another shadow arm appeared from his back.

"Yeah, I remember that. And like I told you, come and try!" Bantus stood back up without hesitation.

RWBY rushed to aid Abaddon, but before they could even get close a wall of black spikes erupted from the ground before them.

"Stay away!" Abaddon demanded.

"Abaddon, we can take him easily together!" Blake replied.

"No! He's my prey! I need to finish him-." A metal fist hit the boy in the chest, sending him flying through a pillar. The black spikes disappeared. The Xanthelus had escaped from its trap, but not without massive burns covering the surface of its armor. It went over to Bantus and scooped him up in one hand.

"What're you doing?!" Bantus screamed.

"Adam has ordered us to retreat. We've done enough, and I have the data I need," said the doctor through the mech's onboard speaker.

The girls advanced on them, only to be stopped when a blinding light flashed from the Xanthelus' chest causing the girls to shield their eyes. They were blinded for almost a minute until the light finally faded. They looked for the Xanthelus and Bantus, only to spot the mech hanging from an airborne bullhead as it flew out of sight.


	28. Chapter 28

_Ch. 28_

"Lucky shot." That was all Cardin managed to utter before he collapsed. His entire team had been decimated by Pyrrha alone. Although, everyone expected this outcome from the world renown fighter herself.

"Well done Ms. Nikos. You should have no problem qualifying for the tournament," said Glynda.

"Thank you, professor," Pyrrha nodded.

"Alright. Now I know that's a tough act to follow, but we have time for one last sparring match. Any volunteers?" Glynda looked around, but no one even budged. So, she decided to pick someone. "Ms. Belladonna, you've been rather docile for the past few classes. Why don't you-."

"I'll do it," Mercury interrupted.

Glynda adjusted her glasses. "Mercury Black. Well, lets find you an opponent?"

"Actually, I'll take on Pyrrha. That is if she's ok with it," said Mercury.

"I'm afraid Ms. Nikos has just finished a matched," Glynda replied. "I recommend you choose another partner."

"No, it's fine," Pyrrha said, then turned to Mercury. "I'd be happy to oblige."

With the match set, Pyrrha and Mercury faced one another in the arena. No dimmed lights to add dramatic effect, just them. Mercury circled around Pyrrha before getting into fighting stance. Mercury struck first with a forward kick, which Pyrrha blocked with her shield. She swept under his legs and tripped him. Mercury landed on his back, but immediately spun back on his feet and did a few back flips to gain distance. Pyrrha charged forward this time with her shield up. Mercury retaliated with a barrage of simple kicks. Pyrrha blocked each attack, then shield bashed him when she found an opening.

"Hmm." The boy nodded to himself, assured of how tough his opponent was. He had been feeling her out, trying to get a handle on how Pyrrha fought.

" _I should stop taking this battle so lightly. I am facing a world champ after all,"_ he thought.

Mercury was the first to attack again. He started with an over head downward kick, which Pyrrha blocked, then followed up with a barrage of fast and wide horizontal kicks. His attacks became more aggressive, putting Pyrrha on the defensive. He continued to advance, not letting Pyrrha out of her defensive. His kicks came from the left, right, and above, but the last kick he aimed for her head…missed her, and lost his footing. He noticed something odd about that, especially since she held her hand out as if to guide his boot.

" _That was odd? Her semblance maybe? Well if it is, then its time I used mine."_ Mercury stood up and repositioned himself. Pyrrha charged forward, but when she got close she immediately found herself falling over. She quickly regained her posture and put her shield up. Pyrrha was surprised at Mercury's newfound speed. She didn't even see the attack coming, it was like it instantly happened. She attacked again. This time she braced herself for anything, but Mercury appeared next to her and blasted her in the right abdomen with a shotgun shell from one of his boots. The bronze champion attempted to retaliate with her sword, maybe even use her semblance to slow him down, but it didn't work out as planned. She found herself getting launched by a kick to the chin, then another in the gut. Pyrrha tumbled backward before gaining some footing.

" _How is he moving so fast? I can't see him at all. Does his semblance deal with speed like Ruby's?"_ Pyrrha questioned.

She would have to figure it out quick if she wanted to win this little match. She decided to wait this time, keep herself on the defensive and learn more. Mercury jumped into the air, firing several blasts at the bronze champion. Pyrrha blocked all of them with her shield, then parried an overhead kick with her sword. She used the recoil of her sword's rifle barrel to make it briefly extend into spear form for a fast jab. Once again Mercury outpaced her and kicked her shield away. Pyrrha instinctively rushed with her sword, but Mercury slipped past her and hit her with an unbelievably fast barrage of kicks until her aura ran low. Pyrrha knelt on one knee in defeat.

"Mercury Black is the victor of the match. Nice performance Mr. Black," said Glynda. "Defeating Ms. Nikos is no easy feat. You are also qualifiable for the tournament."

"Thanks madam," Mercury replied.

"That is all for today. And remember the dance is this weekend, but you all have your next mission on Monday. I will not accept any excuses," Glynda commanded.

"Sorry if it felt like I was doing too much. I thought that since you were using your semblance, then I should too." Mercury helped Pyrrha to her feet, then picked up her shield and handed it to her.

"You could tell? What is your semblance anyway? I tried to figure it out, but couldn't," Pyrrha told him.

Mercury whispered in the redhead's ear. His answer caused her eyes to widen. "I know, it seems unreal but that's what it is. Well, my team's waiting for me. See ya later champ."

Mercury walked off and joined the rest of his team and KAJE.

"You beat a world-renowned fighter Merc. Nice," Jurano said.

"Thanks dude. I didn't expect to have to use my semblance though. I wanted to keep it a surprise," Mercury replied.

"She would've lost either way, in my opinion," Emerald added.

"What is your semblance though?" Emma asked, her curiosity spiked.

"I'll tell you later. First, you should go say hi to SSSN." Mercury pointed forward towards Sun and Neptune, who were also accompanied by Sage and Scarlet.

"Hey! Hey! Hey monkey boy!" Abaddon yelled, but Sun didn't hear him as the boy's attention was currently on Blake as she passed by.

"He's going after his girlfriend bruh," Jurano joked. "Let's talk to Neptune instead. Yo Neptune!"

At the sound of his name being called, Neptune turned their way. He waved for them to come closer. KAJE promised to see team MNCE later and joined Neptune at his request.

"What's up guys? How's it goin?" Neptune asked.

"Eh. Same old, same old. Just finished combat class," Jurano said.

"Although, not everyone got to fight today," Abaddon whined.

"Maybe if you hadn't fallen asleep like Blake did then you could've fought Pyrrha in Mercury's place," Kathleen told him.

"Sun was talking about that too. She hasn't been the same since that night we went out into Vale," Neptune added.

"Yeah, the mission Abby left us behind on." Emma jumped on Abaddon's back and started messing around with his ears.

"Hey, hey, if you wanna play with someone, go climb on Sage. He could use some attention," Abaddon said.

"No thank you. I'm allergic to cat hair." The others chuckled at Sage's joke. Emma stuck her tongue out at him.

"So, you guys ready for the dance?" Sage asked.

"Don't know, I haven't chosen a dress yet. And Emma will need help with hers because she's indecisive," Kathleen said. "But I do have a date in mind."

"And I haven't asked Velvet yet. I have to wait until she gets back from her latest mission," Jurano added.

"What about you Abaddon?" Scarlet asked.

"Haven't really been concerned about it. I'm probably going with Emma. At our old school she would ask either one of us or one of her close female friends cause she didn't trust any of the boys there," Abaddon told them.

"Why not?" Neptune wondered. "They weren't cool enough, were they?"

"Its not that. She just had a bad relationship experience in her early years at Altair academy," Abaddon said. "Don't worry about it though, it's all good. Well, it was nice talking to you guys. See you later."

"Later man." Neptune, Sage, and Scarlet all waved before KAJE left for the dorms.

"Hey Abbs, guess what time it is?" Jurano asked as they walked.

"What? Oh, is it bro time?" Abaddon guessed.

"Hell yeah! I'll meet you at the next dropship to Vale alright!" Jurano ran ahead to the landing pads.

"Now I gotta go make a fool of myself." Abaddon pulled Emma off his back. "I'll see you girls back at our dorm tonight."

"Please don't get arrested," Kathleen requested.

Abaddon smirked. "No promises."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

 _Somewhere deep in the emerald forest…_

"It's not here sir. The energy trail ends here," said an Atlesian trooper.

"Well that's unfortunate," said Ironwood.

He and a small group of troops had been following an energy trail through the emerald forest. It led them to the remains of an old dust factory, another grim reminder of Vale's expansion plan. They managed to close off the area and brought in a squad of Atlesian knight-200s, or AK 200s, along with two paladins to help dig through the rubble. Once most of the debris had been cleared, Ironwood was surprised to see a hole already dug into the basement floor along with a path leading into a cave. Although, finding the cave empty only proved his suspicion that someone had been there before they did.

" _Another trail running cold. This is very troubling. Who could've taken this fragment? My thoughts usually point towards the White Fang, but to be so far ahead feels too quick for them. Maybe, the vigilante? It could be, but that man has been gone for 3 years now. If he is collecting fragments as well, then I'll have to deal with him too."_ Ironwood continued to ponder for a while until another soldier caught his attention.

"Sir, anything else you need us to do?" the trooper asked.

"Our objective isn't here, but their may be some valuables among the rubble. Salvage what you can onto the airships, then we'll depart," Ironwood told him.

"And what will we do about the situation concerning the Amity Coliseum? Don't the operatives need help? And what about Melanie?" the trooper continued.

"I am aware of your worries soldier. Do not worry, and please, get back to your duties," Ironwood replied. "I will be sure to fix all our problems in due time."


	29. Chapter 29

_Ch. 29_

 _BAM!_

The loud sound of a crate being smashed quieted the normally bustling White Fang hideout. Everyone stopped what they were doing, except for two individuals.

"What the hell were you idiots thinking?!" yelled Desmond. He wasn't exactly angry, but clearly unhappy.

Before him, working on the Xanthelus were Bantus and Verruckter. The doctor had his gloved hands working on the inner workings of the cockpit while Bantus sat nearby on his pet ghoul, a box of tools right beside him.

"I beg your pardon kid?" Bantus asked.

"You guys screwed up!" Desmond continued. "That recruitment meeting was going smoothly until you both decided to just pilots your mechs without permission. Seeing a rogue Paladin will most likely alert the authorities and ruin our chances of catching them off guard. Especially with Ironwood currently in the city."

"Two little rats were spying on the meeting. You expect me to not take the chance and hunt them down? That ruins the fun!" Bantus replied.

Verruckter stood up and dusted himself off. "I agree with my comrade. It was the perfect opportunity for a test run for my creation. Now I can better equip it for future incursions."

"And yet not only did we lose one of our mechs, but you failed to capture them!" Desmond retorted.

"Stand down Desmond!" From behind the boy came the one responsible for the entire operation, Adam Taurus. "There's no need to reprimand them. They performed well, and as for the humans, now they have been given a little taste of what we're capable of."

The doctor bowed his head in gratitude. "Thank you, Mr. Taurus." He then went back to his work on the Xanthelus.

"Capturing them would've been an added benefit though. Blake was one of the huntsmen we engaged," Bantus added.

"I am aware," Adam replied. "Don't worry about that. We still have a plan to follow, can't afford to rush things. We must take it slow. Continue with what you were doing."

Bantus smiled. "Aye aye captain."

Adam nodded towards Desmond, who took it as a sign that he too should get back to work. Adam then made his way back to his quarters, but ever since he found out that Blake was in Vale he couldn't get her out of his head.

" _I will get you back Blake. One way or another."_

 _XXXXXXX_

"You got any plans today bro?" Abaddon asked Jurano as the latter left the bathroom.

"Yeah dude, I'm going somewhere with Velvet to pick out her dress for the dance. Although, she probably won't let me see it until the weekend," Jurano replied.

"Haha, of course, it's a surprise! She'd probably wanna see your jaw drop when you see her in it." Abaddon flopped over onto his bed with his hands crossed behind his head. "Meanwhile, I'm gonna relax until Emma gets here. She said she's making dinner in the kitchen and I wanna taste it."

Jurano chuckled as he finished putting on his clothes and was ready to depart when he heard someone's scroll ring on the floor nearby. He picked it up and looked at the screen.

"Hey Abb, you got a message." Jurano tossed Abaddon's scroll to him.

The faunus caught his scroll and checked his messages. There was one from Kathleen that said:

 _Hey. If you're not busy, come to meet me in Vale in front of the tea shop. And don't bring your gauntlets, just you._

"Who is it?" Jurano asked, seeing Abaddon put his shoes on.

"Kat wants to meet me in the city for some reason," Abaddon replied. "I'm gonna go see what's up."

Jurano leaned back against the room door. "Alright. But what about Emma?"

Abaddon pocketed his scroll and put on his hoodie. "I didn't tell her that I was staying. She's gonna be cooking for a while, especially with the teacher she has. I should be back by the time she does, I think."

"If you say so, bro." Jurano opened the door and left. "I'll see ya later. And good luck."

"See ya." Abaddon exited their dorm, locking the door behind him. He made his way to the school airpads and boarded a ship to Vale.

" _I wonder what he meant by 'good luck',"_ Abaddon thought as his stop came up.

He exited the airship and walked through the city to the tea shop Kathleen mentioned. Even though she didn't say its name, he knew what shop she was talking about: the same one where Sun had been with Blake some time ago. Its original name was Tea Guru, but despite its name the shop did sell other drinks, foods, and services. Abaddon made it to the building but didn't see Kathleen at all.

"Hey, up here!"

Abaddon looked up and found his partner sitting on the rail of the second-floor balcony. The boy jumped up and grabbed onto the rail, then pulled himself up to sit right next to Kathleen.

"So, what's up?"

Kathleen smiled. "Just wanted to hang out is all. Plus, I kinda want someone with me to make a final decision on my dress."

"You sure you want me to help you with this kind of thing?" Abaddon asked.

"Well, of all opinions, I do trust my partner's the most," Kathleen replied. "Come on, let's go."

Kathleen jumped down from the rail to the ground below. Abaddon followed suit, landing right beside her.

"Aye, aye captain," he said with a salute.

The duo traversed the town until they found a clothing store that suited Kathleen's fancy. It was different than the other few stores they visited last semester, for it was much bigger and had a larger variety of men's and women's clothes to try on. The store just so happened to be having a sale that day, but it wasn't crowded at all.

Abaddon scratched his head. _"Guess we lucked out today."_

He had planned on buying Kathleen's dress for her and anything she wanted with it as he already gave Emma Lien for her dress and he didn't need anything since he already had a suit from Jurano, who had brought a spare from home. He still had more than enough Lien to buy a dress and more, but he was cautious since he wanted to save as much as he could.

Abaddon sat in the waiting area of the dressing room as Kathleen went out into the throng of clothes to find anything she wished to try on. He waited for about ten minutes before his partner returned with at least seven dresses in hand.

"Damn Kat!" Abaddon chuckled.

"Hold on, this isn't everything I found." Kathleen went inside the dressing room and dumped her clothes in one of the stalls. She then went back out to grab the pairs of shoes she left in her search and brought them into the stall as well.

"Don't suffocate in there alright," Abaddon exclaimed as Kathleen closed the stall door.

" _Now back to the waiting game."_ Abaddon laid back in his seat and waited for Kathleen to try on her first outfit.

"Here we are." Kathleen came out with a skin-tight purple sleeveless dress that exposed her right leg up to her mid-thigh and had a three-buttoned collar. She also wore a pair of white gloves that reached halfway up her arm, some diamond earrings, and purple heels.

Abaddon smiled, looking up and down. "That one's fine but let's see the next one."

Kathleen disappeared for a few minutes. When she came back, she wore a long black dress with light brown fur trim that went under the shoulders. The ends of the sleeves were decorated with floral patterns and the bottom of the dress was cut on the sides to expose her thighs. In addition, Kathleen wore several necklaces, had black heels, and her hair was fixed up in the back by two pins, allowing some of her hair to cover the left side of her face.

"What about this one?" she asked.

Abaddon went up to her and brushed her hair away from her eye. "In my opinion, you shouldn't look like your going to a Mistralian ballroom dance."

Kathleen chuckled. "You would say that. Ok, I'm gonna try on another one."

"Alright." Abaddon sat back down while Kathleen rushed back into the dressing room.

Kathleen came out once again with another outfit. This dress had a custom corset that exposed a bit of her upper bosom with a burgundy strip going vertically down the middle and black on both sides. Under it was a burgundy skirt that had a darker colored skirt piece on each side adorned with a burgundy rose. She also had long black gloves, two silver necklaces with one sporting a burgundy jewel, black dance shoes, and a headband adorned with roses.

"Whoa, whoa, whoaaa, you don't have to be _that_ hot for a school dance," Abaddon said.

"I know, but I still like it," Kathleen said as she twirled around to allow the skirt to flow. "Ok, just one more dress to go."

Abaddon nodded, and Kathleen went back to her dressing room. When she came out, she wore a long black and midnight blue sleeveless dress that left her back entirely bare. It was held up by two straps that went from her lower back to the top of the dress which was tied around her neck. The lower back was also tied in a large bow to keep it off the floor. In addition, Kathleen sported a black blue flower on the left side of her head, blue star-shaped earrings and black heels with blue soles.

"Whooaaa, I'm liking that one." Abaddon walked around Kathleen as he looked up and down.

"Hmmm, I still like the others though. What should I choose?" Kathleen asked.

"Like I said, I really like that one, but it's your choice that matters. You're the one who's gonna be wearing the dress," Abaddon replied.

"True, true. Hmmmmm." Kathleen thought of all the colors and accessories she had just tried on and came up with a solution. "Oh! Hold on, this will take a while."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

 _Late at night…_

"And how long did she take?" Emma asked.

"Close to half an hour I think," Abaddon said as he stared up at the ceiling.

He and Emma were the only ones awake now. Jurano and Kathleen had gone to bed several hours before, and Abaddon would have too if Emma hadn't chosen to jump on him right when he was about to close his eyes.

"You're lying. Kat doesn't take that long," Emma purred.

Abaddon sighed. "The more you purr, the less likely I'm gonna be able to sleep Em."

"Nothing new. So what dress did she pick?" Emma asked.

"I don't know. She wouldn't tell me, even though I was paying for it. Said it was a secret until the dance," the boy replied.

"She's probably gonna pick the one _you_ like the most," Emma told him.

"What? Why would she? I told her to pick what she liked," Abaddon huffed.

"Uggh! Abby, you're so fucking dense!" Emma huffed, glaring at her brother.

"Hey, language. You're not old enough to say 'fuck'," he retorted. "And how am I dense?"

"Kathleen's in love with you for god's sake! All the times she blushes when you're near her, she gets defensive when other girls touch you like when Cinder flirts with you or Coco smacks your butt, and especially the fact that she's your partner. When you were gone for those three years, she had trouble coping since we thought you were dead. Half the time she was alright, but the other half she seemed…empty. Like a part of her was missing. We knew it was because of you all along. I promised I wouldn't tell, but watching you acting so freaking dense went from being funny to annoying. There, I'm done!" Emma buried her in her pillow. "I'm going to sleep. I hate ranting."

Abaddon stayed silent the entire time, taking in every word of what his sister just said. He never thought of that about Kathleen that way, nor did he bother to notice those things about her. Looking back into his memories with Emma's words in mind, he saw all the telltale moments of Kathleen's affection for him, whether they were mild or shockingly noticeable to the dumbest of people. And in all that thinking he thought of one thing:

" _I'm such a fucking idiot."_

 _ **Author's Note:**_

 _ **I haven't done any of these notes before, and it probably won't be often. For those who do read this story, I appreciate it greatly. I've had a lot to think about what I want to put in this story. The last time I updated was like January, and after that I had been focusing on five college classes, one of which I barely passed. I've been working on other fiction stuff, but most of all I'm a lazy writer. A very lazy writer. I sleep a lot, I game a lot, but I'll try to make myself pump out chapters more often. Thanks peoples.**_


	30. Chapter 30

_Ch. 30_

 _The night of dance…_

"Hey Abb, you ready to go or what?" Jurano asked.

"Just about." Abaddon came out of the bathroom wearing a suit with dress pants and dress shoes. "Where the heck's my bow tie?"

"It's there," Jurano replied, nodding towards the black accessory sitting on the faunus' bed. "You need help putting it on?"

"Don't play with me, I know it's a clip-on," Abaddon said as he put the bow tie on his dress shirt. "Didn't the girls leave ahead of us?"

"Yeah, they did. Velvet told me she was gonna allow Yatsu to have her first dance," Jurano huffed.

Abaddon chuckled. "Coco did tell me a while ago that he could get jealous. Is it showing?"

"How the hell should I know when all I feel are giant metaphorical daggers staring into my back! Jesus Christ!" Jurano laughed. "Although, that's not the only thing that's on my mind."

"What else is there?" Abaddon asked.

"I'll tell you later. Let's get to the dance floor first."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

 _In the ballroom…_

The Beacon Dance had already started taking place, with Yang herself standing at the entrance to welcome all the guests. She wore a short, white, halter neck dress with a pale grey hem and white pump heels. As she was looking at the schedule and roster for the dance, a certain young girl caught her attention as she entered the room.

Yang gasped. "Ohh, you look beautiful!"

Ruby awkwardly stood in the doorway wearing a short, red, sleeveless dress with a thick black sash around the waist and black trim along the bottom. The bodice of the dress was split vertically to the sash and laced with black lacing while the yoke of the dress consisted of translucent mesh with an opaque color and hem, as well as opaque lines connecting the collar to her shoulders. She also wore black stockings and black heels.

"Can we have a serious talk about how Weiss fights in these?" Ruby whined.

She stumbled with every step she took towards Yang, the latter laughing at her younger sister.

"Did you even find someone to bring? Or did someone find you?" Yang asked.

"Actually…uhhhhmmm, _they_ kinda found me," Ruby said.

"Ruby!" Emma and Neo suddenly appeared behind the redhead. Emma wore a short blue-green V-neck dress, in which the bodice of the dress was frilly in the front upper torso and a sash-like garment ran widely around her lower torso from the back and ended at the front with a blue-green rose. She also had blue-green long-sleeved gloves with a blue decorative flower on her left wrist along with black short heeled shoes.

Neo wore a sleeveless outfit that consisted of a black decorative collar that was connected to a dark grey sash which went over her right breast, around her back, over her left breast, and tied back to the neck. Over the grey sash, she wore a black overbust corset with pink lining in the middle and white lining on the breast, along with stripes colored to fade from white to pink, to grey going alongside the lining. She had a faded grey short skirt lined with black designs under two drape-like garments on the left and right of the skirt, connected to the corset. These garments left the front open to show Neo's legs and skirt and were double layered: the first was black and pink with dark magenta lining on the bottom and the second was pink with white designs on the bottom and faded white coloring on the inside. She also wore a small pink glove on her right hand and long black and pink shoes with long white socks.

"You made it!" Neo exclaimed.

"And with heels on!" Emma added.

"How did you two get her to agree to dance?" Yang asked.

"We said we would bring her hood, and an entire box of cookies afterward," Neo said.

"You lied, didn't you?" Yang surmised.

"Only about the first part," Neo answered.

"What?! Why?!" Ruby exclaimed.

Emma sighed. "Calm down Ruby. We're gonna have lots of fun!"

Both Emma and Neo then grabbed Ruby by her arms and dragged her to the dance floor, Yang smiling after them. The door creaked open again as Blake entered with Sun, Velvet with Jurano, and Abaddon with Cinder.

Blake wore a short, purple, asymmetrical, halter neck dress that was split up the right side and had a black collar. Translucent black mesh covered her shoulders, décolletage, and back, and decorative black swirls covered the left side. She also had black heels and a teal bow instead of black.

Velvet wore a long brown sleeveless dress with black designs and gold lining on the shoulder straps, bottom edges, and chest. An opening on each side of the dress exposed some of her legs and she had dark brown heels. Cinder wore a formal black evening gown with glass designs and black glass heels.

"Hey guys, you all look great tonight!" Yang complemented them.

"Thanks. Worked all day on it," Sun said.

"No, you didn't, that's your usual getup but with a black shirt and tie!" Abaddon accused.

"Hey, I grew up in Vacuo," Sun replied. "It's not exactly a shirt-and-tie kind of place."

"We noticed," everyone said, almost in unison.

"Well, if you excuse me, I'm gonna get my first dance in now." Yang went over to Blake, grabbed her arm, and went off to the dance floor.

"Isn't she your date Sun?" Velvet asked.

Sun nodded. "Yeah, but she told me her first dance was already spoken for. Who am I to get in the way. Besides, they are partners."

"True," Jurano agreed. "Sun, have you seen Neptune anywhere?"

"Yeah, he came in before me. He was looking pretty confident too," said Sun.

"Oh good, he overcame his fear," Velvet cheered.

"What fear?" Cinder asked.

"Abaddon, remember when I went with Velvet to get her dress? Well, we found Neptune on the way and he was looking quite unnerved. I pestered him until he confessed his shit. Turns out he was asked to the dance by Weiss, but he rejected her and felt guilty about it. The reason why? He couldn't fucking dance," Jurano told them.

"Are you serious?" Cinder sighed.

"We're not joking," Velvet added. "He didn't even want to confess at first because he was trying to be so _cool_. So, we took him to a private spot and taught him how to dance."

"Sweeeet," Sun said.

"When someone needs a lesson in dancing, Jurano's there to help. He always has been," Abaddon said. "But how about we cut the chitchat and go have a good time."

Everyone nodded, went their separate ways and ventured into the ballroom. Abaddon and Cinder stopped on the left side of the dance floor. They began dancing, with her right hand in his left, his right hand on her waist, and her other hand on his shoulder. As they danced, Abaddon looked around him at the other students around them: Sun was dancing with Blake, Velvet with Jurano, Emma, Neo, and Ruby were trying to be in sync, Weiss was talking with Neptune, Emerald was dancing and giggling at whatever Mercury was saying, and every other student was either by themselves, with a friend, or with a date. Even Remora, wearing a leaf green gown, and Klyde, wearing a suit, was having a great time.

"Checking to see if the others are having a good time?" Cinder asked, catching his attention.

"Yeah, especially Emma," Abaddon answered.

"Oh right, you did tell me about her…situation concerning dances and dating," she recalled.

"Mhm, but I can't take her to every dance like I used to, which is why I'm glad she's made friends like Ruby and Neo here," Abaddon said. "I promised her parents that I would look after her when I'm able, but she still has to grow. We all do."

"Plus, you need to make sure that _Abaddon_ is having a good time," Cinder told him. "And speaking of growing, I've noticed you've _grown_ less distant from me."

"Focus Cin. That's because you've taken a break from flirting with me like usual, but it's good to know that you've got my back." Abaddon slowly spun Cinder around, earning a giggle from the brunette.

"You're welcome," said Cinder. "And thanks for letting me get the first dance. Now you should go see that wallflower up there."

Abaddon looked up at the second floor and caught a flash of purple hair walking away from the railing.

"And remember what we talked about earlier okay." Cinder pinched his cheek. "Don't beat around the bush."

"Yes ma'am," Abaddon replied. "And what will you do in the meantime?"

"Hey!" Cinder pinched him again, harder this time. "I said don't beat around the bush and go have fun."

"Alright, I'm going."

With that, Cinder and Abaddon bowed to one another and separated. Abaddon went to the staircase that led to the upper floor, but on the way, he spotted Jaune standing against the wall nearby. Despite Cinder's advice, the faunus stopped to talk to the blonde.

"Hey, Jaune? How's it going?" Abaddon greeted him.

"Oh, hey Abaddon. Just having a great time like everyone else," Jaune lied.

Abaddon frowned. "You're standing against the wall by yourself dude."

"I know!" Jaune said, giving in. "It's just…I was gonna ask Weiss to the dance, but she wanted Neptune…so I don't know what to do."

"Damn, both you and Neptune are something else! But, I can't really judge can I," Abaddon said aloud.

"What do you mean?" Jaune asked.

Abaddon told Jaune about what happened with Neptune, which greatly surprised the blonde. "And don't tell anyone about that."

"But he's…so…cool," Jaune said.

"He is, but coolness isn't everything," Abaddon said. "You're pretty cool in your own way too Jaune."

"Okay, okay, don't lie to my face," Jaune whined.

"I'm not," Abaddon replied. "But you know what would make you even cooler? If you go talk to that tall, beautiful amazon standing over there."

Jaune looked towards where Abaddon was indicating and saw Pyrrha on the other side of the room also standing against the wall. Her hair was still in the same ponytail she usually had, and she wore her earrings and brown circlet. She wore a long, red, sleeveless dress with black heels.

"You mean Pyrrha? No, no, no, she's way out of my league," Jaune said.

Abaddon smacked him lightly upside his head. "You keep thinking like that and you're gonna blow it. She doesn't even have a date."

"What? But…she's Pyrrha Nikos," Jaune said.

"Just because she's famous doesn't mean every boy will be drooling over her. Now, how about this: we both have similar situations going on, so, if I go do what I gotta do, then you must as well. Agreed?" Abaddon held out his hand

Jaune was silent for a moment in hesitation, but then smiled and shook the faunus' hand. "Agreed."

"Alright, good luck." Abaddon left Jaune and went up the stairs.

He passed by several students until he found one lone girl overlooking the dance floor. She wore a dark purple sleeveless bare back dress. The front connected to a collar around her neck and had a teardrop shaped opening. A large bow tied her dress in the lower back at the waist. The sides had slits that allow some of her legs to be seen. The bow usually used for her ponytail was replaced with a dark purple flower. She also wore purple long gloves, her usual star pendant necklace, purple star earrings, another purple flower on the left side of her head, and black heels.

Abaddon smiled. "Hey beautiful."

Kathleen turned towards her partner and smiled. "Hey Abb, what're you doing up here?"

"I came up here to see you, Kat," Abaddon answered.

Kathleen blinked. "But, wasn't Cinder-."

"I'm sorry Kathleen."

Kathleen looked puzzled. "For what?"

"To put it simply: for being so dense," Abaddon chuckled. "Honestly, I didn't know that I had that kind of effect on you, or that you adored me that much. I was totally clueless until I was told about everything directly. And before you start glaring daggers at Jurano, it was Emma who told me because she was fed up with me. I would be fed up with me too. But what I want to know is, what is it about me that catches your eye?"

Kathleen sighed and looked back over the balcony. "Would you believe me if I said it started when we were little kids? I had no friends. I drove them away because I was being stupid, cocky, and foolish. I didn't get any second chances. I was alone until you came along. You gave me a chance, and through you, I made friends that I couldn't have achieved alone: Jurano, Emma, Grandpa Heracles. I even consider Jack as one of my closest friends, despite his insane antics. Furthermore, it was your perseverance, no matter how much you failed, you pushed on to keep going, especially when it comes to losing to me in sparring or anything else. You became someone special to me, which is why during your absence it affected me so much, like an important part of my life was gone. And I was full of regret that I didn't get to thank you at the time because I was afraid that I wouldn't get to tell you, or you wouldn't understand how I felt."

Abaddon grabbed one of Kathleen's hands. "And you're still foolish now, to think that I wouldn't understand my own partner. And I don't die that easily, but I shouldn't have put you through that emptiness. I'm gonna make it right, in any way I can. So how about it then?"

"How about what?" Kathleen asked.

"Will you let this dense motherfucker have this dance?" Abaddon asked her.

Kathleen chuckled. "I'd be happy to."

Just as they were about to go down to the dance floor, they heard a chorus of laughter erupt from the students below. The duo glanced over the balcony to see Jaune entering the dance floor…wearing a white dress.

"Oh my gosh Jaune!" Kathleen laughed.

" _Holy crap!"_ Abaddon thought.

They watched as Jaune approached Pyrrha and asked her to dance. He then took to the middle of the dance floor with his team and engaged in an epic group dance. No one knew that Jaune was a good dancer, and his moves left many with wide eyes and bright smiles as they watched the blonde goofball. Abaddon and Kathleen went down to join everyone as they cheered for JNPR. Then, shortly after the excitement had ended, the dance floor became calm again.

"That was unexpected, wasn't it," Kathleen said as she and her partner danced.

"Sure was," Abaddon replied. "I still can't believe he wore that dress. He's got guts."

Abaddon looked to his right to see Jurano and Velvet smiling at them.

"About time dumbass!" Jurano mouthed.

"Yeah, I know! Shut your hole!" Abaddon mouthed back.

"What, was he waiting for you to talk to me?" Kathleen asked.

"Yeah, and now I'm probably gonna get an earful of excitement from Emma later." Abaddon checked on Emma again and was happy to see that not only had she and Neo managed to get Ruby to follow a beat, they even brought Penny over.

Abaddon smiled. "Great, a childish cat, three flavor ice cream, a socially awkward rose, and a Penny. That's a heck of a combination."

Kathleen chuckled, then placed her head on her partner's chest. _"This is one night I'm not gonna forget anytime soon."_


	31. Chapter 31

_Ch. 31_

"Duuuddee, couldn't we just get one full day off after the dance?" Jurano whined as KAJE headed towards the auditorium.

Everyone went to their dorms right after the dance the night before, but the only reprieve they gained was sleeping in a few extra hours. Even though there were no classes that day, it was mission day, and everyone had to sign up for one no matter how tired they were.

"Too bad. You shouldn't have stayed up late with Velvet," Kathleen retorted.

"What were you two doing anyway?" Emma asked.

Jurano slightly blushed. "Nothing…you need to…worry about."

"Hmmm, love making perhaps?" Abaddon couldn't help but tease the boy.

"No! It's just none of your business." Jurano blushed even harder.

"Alright, alright, we'll wait 'til you're ready," Abaddon told him.

They entered the auditorium and went up to one of the large mission screens. Abaddon scrolled through the various missions for a minute, looking for any extermination missions, but came up with none.

"Shit, there's only scout and city patrol missions available for us. The rest are either taken or for upperclassman only," he grumbled.

"Hey, at least we'll get to relax today," Kathleen said, grasping his left hand.

"True," Abaddon agreed.

"Hey, guys!" Team KAJE turned around to see team RWBY heading their way.

"Yo, what's going on?" Jurano wondered.

"Have you seen JNPR? We were supposed to go on a mission with them, but Jaune's not answering his scroll," Ruby told them. "And we can't find Professor Goodwitch."

"We haven't seen JNPR since the dance, and Goodwitch…just entered the auditorium right now," Emma pointed.

Glynda walked into the auditorium, all the while tapping and sliding away on her scroll. She didn't even look at the two teams until she was right in front of them.

"Good afternoon teams RWBY and KAJE," she greeted.

"Professor, have you seen JNPR?" Weiss asked.

"They've already departed on their mission," Glynda said plainly.

"They left?!" Ruby screamed.

"Yes," the professor said. "They're planning to exterminate a group of Grimm on their own."

Ruby grimaced. "Grrr…Jaune's being weirdly proactive."

"Nothing really wrong with being proactive…unless he didn't plan things out," Kathleen added.

"Perhaps he's trying to clear the mission and gain experience before you do so he can demonstrate how brave he is to Weiss or Pyrrha Nikos?" Glynda surmised.

"Professor! You're so cynical," Ruby said. "But I can actually see that…"

"We left 20 minutes late because you overslept, Ruby! Don't forget you're the leader of this team!" Weiss said, reprimanding Ruby.

"Uh, I was tired because you got all excited about brushing up on history 'till late last night," Ruby shot back.

As Ruby and Weiss continued to argue, Ozpin strolled into the room.

"Mr. Rizer."

Abaddon turned in response to his name. "Oh, hey Professor Ozpin."

"I would like to ask a favor of you," he said.

Abaddon shrugged. "Sure, why not."

"After your incursion last semester deep within the emerald forest, we sent scouts to investigate whether the upsurge of Grimm had diminished, which it has, but a new kind of Grimm has entered the fray," Ozpin explained.

"Which is?" Emma asked.

"The same Grimm that attacked team RWBY on their last mission. I believe they're called Ghouls," Ozpin stated.

" _Of course. Whenever there's one Ghoul, there's always more in the area,"_ Abaddon thought.

"Your grandfather informed me that you had experience with these Grimm. In fact, you're the only person here I know of that has had past encounters with them, besides team RWBY and Oobleck, but I'd rather not send them due to what happened to Ms. Rose last time," Ozpin told them. "That and they've already left to assist JNPR."

"Then what are we waiting for? We can take this mission ourselves. No problem," Jurano said with a confident grin.

"Yeah, let's go!" Emma jumped up in excitement.

Abaddon smiled. "You okay with this too Kat? I thought you wanted to relax today."

Kathleen shrugged. "I'll be fine. Besides, we have to see what those Ghouls are doing here anyway."

Abaddon sighed. "Well, you heard them, Professor. Ready when you are."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

The bullhead flew off with a low roar, leaving the huntsmen in training on their own. The group then began their stroll through the forest.

Jurano pulled out his scroll and expanded it to show a map of the known area. It displayed their location, which was even deeper in the Emerald Forest than they were last time. "So, since Emma and I haven't fought any yet, what are we to expect from these Ghouls?"

"Well," Abaddon began, "they are smarter than your average Grimm, able to work in groups like the Beowulf packs. They are fast, strong, durable, and deadly, especially the shadow balls they spew from their mouths. You get hit with those, you'll feel like your melting and burning at the same time, especially when your aura is in the red, which is why Ruby was like that. They can also emit their breath as a harmless smokescreen that can blind their foes…or prey. They don't usually retreat from a fight. Nevertheless, they are the most unpredictable Grimm I know."

"Is this info courtesy of your adventures?" Kathleen asked.

Abaddon nodded. "Yeah. I encountered many and destroyed as many as I could. Their existence is not widely known though, for their appearance was sometimes heralded by White Fang activity…like there was a connection. Cinder and I tried looking into it, but nothing came up except the weird animal traits they have and how they turn into their superior stage."

"Superior stage," Emma repeated. "You mean the Mega Ghoul you were talking about at the city docks?"

"Yeah. Stronger shadow balls that can be shot at a faster fire rate, extra limbs, a little more strength and intelligence, greater size, and regeneration. All the things you _don't_ want in a Grimm like that. I've only seen a Mega form when two Ghouls forced themselves together. The way that Ghoul at the docks transformed, by eating its own kin, that was new to me," Abaddon explained.

"Well, that just means we have more to learn. And more to tell professor Oobleck," Kathleen said.

Then, Emma's faunus ears perked up. "Wait, guys! I hear footsteps."

Abaddon's ears perked up as well. He could hear a multitude of footsteps northeast of their position.

"That way!" Abaddon rushed northeast with his team in tow. They ran about 30 meters before coming to stop in a crowd of bushes bordering a large ravine. Abaddon peeked through the foliage to get a look at what they were getting themselves into.

"Shit," he said.

"What? Are there too many Ghouls?" Emma asked.

"No, it's worse. Come look."

Kathleen, Emma, and Jurano all peeked in out the bushes as well. What they saw did not boost their confidence. In the ravine were eight Ghouls, all sitting or crawling around as if there was nothing to do. Amid the group was what was really concerning: A huge hound-like quadraped Grimm with three narrow canine heads. Its body was mainly black like most Grimm and had white skeletal spines going down its necks and back all the way to the tip of its slender tail. The skeletal structure of its underbelly could also be seen on its chest. Each head had mostly bone armor with flesh only shown in the mouth and under the chin.

Next to the beast was another dog-like Grimm. It was small next to the three-headed beast, but almost as big as a Ghoul. It had clawed paws, a tail, and sported a Grimm mask with small red eyes and red markings.

"Are Cerberus supposed to be that big?" Kathleen asked aloud.

"No. In our books, it says that the biggest recorded one was around the size of an Ursa Major," Jurano answered. "This one's as big as a fucking Goliath!"

"This Cerberus must've survived a long time to get that big," Abaddon explained. "Another thing is that there is only one Cadejo next to that Cerberus. There's supposed to be two: a black one and a white one."

"Over there." Emma pointed to the other side of the ravine. Another Cadejo walked out of the trees, its skin stark white, unlike its counterpart. It trotted along the other edge of the ravine on black hooves instead of paws.

"What all do we know about these Grimm?" Kathleen asked.

"The Ghouls should take priority. They're the most intelligent of the group and are probably hanging around the big dog for added protection," Abaddon said.

"Cerberus are known to be very aggressive bastards," said Jurano. "And that Grimm's size just makes it worse. We could probably attack it all together in different directions to confuse it. But we have to watch out for its fire breath."

Emma was last to add her bit. "Cadejos always come in pairs. When you find one, the other isn't too far away. The black one is the heavy hitter but it's slow, while the white one is the fast runner but its all-around weaker in battle. The white one, when caught, could be dealt with first and the black one picked off last."

"So, it's settled," Abaddon exclaimed. "Kathleen and I will handle the Ghouls, Jurano and Emma catch the Cadejos, and after that, we all jump the Cerberus. Any questions?"

Emma raised her hand. "Will it be difficult to destroy that many Ghouls? You said they are pretty tough."

"Hmmm." Abaddon peeked out of the bushes and looked back and forth across the ravine until he found what he was looking for. "Don't worry, this should go smoothly."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

The white Cadejo trotted back and forth across the ravine's edge. In truth, the beast could not stand still and wait, unlike its counterpart. Grimm could not normally communicate with one another, but it, along with the black Cadejo and the Cerberus, had been following the Ghouls. The Ghouls had been tracking the scent of humans. They seemed to be communicating, but what really brought the other three to follow the Ghouls was something much more alluring: Negative emotion. The scent of raw hatred left behind by a group of faunus. Negative emotions like terror, sadness, fear, anger, all these were like the smell of a delicious meal begging to be found. And they would follow it until they could feast on the source with their very eyes, and destroy it, as was the purpose of their existence. The Grimm continued to stroll around until a sound in the brush caught its attention. The white Cadejo howled, signaling its partner to join it. The black one heeded its call and climbed up the steep slope, using its claws to dig into the dirt. It joined the white one as it headed into the trees. Another sound, the breaking of branches, lured them even further. More lures later and soon enough the pair were a little over a mile away from the other Grimm. The white Cadejo looked around, expecting another lure, but was surprised to hear three gunshots go off. Three bullets embedded themselves in the flesh of its left side and made it tumble to the ground.

"Jurano, now!"

Given his signal, Jurano dove from the trees above the black Cadejo. He landed on its back and used his semblance to quickly electrify its body, stunning the beast in the process. The white Cadejo began to regain its footing, but before it could even take two steps Emma swept in with her Umbra Claws and sliced through its front legs.

 _ROOOOOOOO!_

The helpless creature fell to the ground again, holding up the front of its body with the leftover stumps it had. It gazed at Emma as she lifted one of her hand scythes to its skull and fired a bullet into its head, finally freeing it from its suffering.

"The white one is dead," Emma said.

"Nice!" Jurano leaped off the black Cadejo.

Free from the electric bonds keeping it paralyzed, the Grimm stood up on its hind legs and roared. On two feet, it was taller than an Ursa Major. It swiped its claws at the duo, but they managed to dash out of its range. Emma fired several rifle rounds into the Cadejos hide, but this only irritated it more. It grabbed two boulders in its paws and threw them at her. Emma teleported out of the way of the first and cut the second in half with her full scythe. Jurano aimed his hand cannon at the Cadejo's left paw and blasted part of it off. It screamed in pain as it gave Jurano its full attention. It charged on all fours in his direction. Jurano's double-barreled green and black hand cannon, Irakkamarra, had three ammo cylinders that could automatically switch thanks to a rotating vial mechanism that they were connected to. This vial had a kinetic converter that gained kinetic energy from the fast rotation of the three cylinders. Jurano electrified his gun, giving the shot the extra power it needed. After a few seconds, before the Cadejo was even five feet from him, Jurano fired the shot.

 _BANG!_

It was powerful enough to blow its head and some of its torso to pieces. The body slid to a stop in front of the huntsman as he smiled triumphantly.

"Both Cadejos are down! I repeat, both Cadejos are down!"

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

Abaddon sat against an enormous boulder on the lip of the ravine, waiting patiently.

" _Hopefully those Grimm don't catch on to the disappearance of the Cadejos. The Cerberus is just pure muscle, but the Ghouls are what makes this plan somewhat difficult,"_ he thought.

Abaddon's communicator crackled to life. _"Hey, Abaddon."_

"What's up Kat?" he replied.

" _When we get back after this, what're we gonna do for our first date?"_ Kathleen asked.

Abaddon smiled. "I hadn't really thought about that lately. Maybe a night on the town?"

" _So, you agree that we're dating then,"_ Kathleen concluded.

Abaddon blinked. "I didn't even get a chance to ask yesterday though. I was focused on the dance at present."

" _You kinda did, in your apology. Just indirectly. And I accepted,"_ Kathleen concluded again.

Abaddon blinked again and laughed. "Fine. I don't know how that really works in your mind, but I'm cool with it."

" _The Cadejos are down! I repeat, the Cadejos are down!"_

"Here we go!" Abaddon stood up and lifted the boulder by its edge without much effort and pushed it.

On the other side of the ravine behind another boulder, Kathleen prepared herself to push hers. She wasn't as physically strong as her partner, so she struck the boulder's surface with her palm and at the same time channeled her aura into the strike to send the rock tumbling. Both boulders fell into the ravine, dislodging other debris as they fell. The Ghouls below looked up to see the carnage coming from above. They had almost no time to react as they were crushed.

"The Ghouls have been buried. Get your asses over here before the Cerberus gets up," Abaddon said into the communicator.

Kathleen jumped across the ravine to Abaddon's side. "That worked better than you thought, didn't it?"

"Yeah, I thought at least one or two Ghouls would've jumped to safety," he admitted. "I wouldn't have any trouble with them though. It's just dealing with them while trying not to get roasted that would get annoying."

A moment later, the ravine exploded in a shower of flaming rock. The two huntsmen stepped back from the heat coming from in the ravine.

Abaddon unsheathed his Obsidian Fangs. "Someone's pissed."

Jurano and Emma arrived with their weapons still in hand.

"What's going on!?" Emma exclaimed.

The claws of Cerberus grabbed onto the edges of the ravine. It crawled onto even ground, its body covered in its own flames.

Abaddon ignited his swords with twilight. "Guys, we're about to experience a small glimpse of hell."


	32. Chapter 32

_Ch. 32_

The first thing the Cerberus did was fire three huge fireballs at the huntsmen. They quickly jumped out the way, making sure to gain distance from the explosion the fireballs caused.

"So, what's the game plan for this thing?" Jurano yelled.

"That hide is too thick for most firearms to pierce," Abaddon replied. "It's best we all use melee. Jurano, your hand cannon is strong but I'm afraid you'll need to fire a kinetic shot at its vital points to do any considerable damage. Also, it's too big for you to immobilize with your electricity."

"I need a bit of time to charge it and I can shoot about 6 more times before the vial converter needs to be replaced," Jurano told him.

Abaddon nodded. "Emma, I need you to distract it with hit and run tactics. Stay out of the way of its claws and teeth."

"Got it!" And Emma was gone.

"Kathleen, me and you will be the damage dealers. I'll use my twilight in tandem with your semblance and Jurano's hand cannon to kill it as fast as possible. If we don't, we'll be surrounded in an uncontrollable forest fire," Abaddon explained before rushing the Cerberus itself.

Jurano went left, Kathleen right, and Abaddon center. All three heads of the Cerberus followed each of the three huntsman, but then Emma land on the middle head and fired both rifles at it. She teleported as it shook its head and reappeared on the ground in front of it.

"Come on big guy. I'm right here!" Emma teleported once more before three fireballs scorched the spot she stood on.

She landed on its back and fired rapidly at its flesh. The Cerberus shook again, trying to get her off, but failed to notice Abaddon going in between its front legs. He slashed cleanly through the backs of its front knees, causing the beast to roar in pain. A few seconds after, Kathleen slashed the back-right knee while Jurano slashed the back left. The beast trembled, as if to fall to its knees, but stayed strong and remained standing. One of the Cerberus' heads glared at Jurano, but that was its mistake. Jurano already had Irakkamarra aimed and charged. He fired the kinetic blast, and when it hit, it bore a hole into the left head's left eye. The Cerberus roared even louder this time. Its remaining eyes not only glowed a brighter red, but red cracks also started to spread from them and the fires emanating from its mouth grew in intensity.

"It's enraged!" Abaddon yelled. "Everyone stand back and stay on your toes!"

Jurano and Kathleen stepped back, but Emma didn't hear her brother. She continued to teleport around the beast until she appeared too close to its tail. The Grimm noticed this and managed to smack her with it. Emma flew and landed in front of the Cerberus. Momentarily dazed, she shook her head but was unaware of the immediate danger she was in. The Cerberus, with one of its legs raised, was ready to crush her. Emma didn't notice until she saw its foot bearing down on her. In the nick of time, Abaddon pushed the girl to safety and caught the Grimm's paw with his bare hands. The Cerberus continued to bear down its weight on the boy, all the while preparing to spew fire on him.

"Don't get a hot head!" Abaddon tossed the paw to the side, then jumped up with one of his great swords in hand. He sliced through one of the heads, the middle one, and landed on its back. He then created a huge twilight orb and slammed it down on the Cerberus' spine, finally crippling the beast. With such a powerful blow to its body, the Grimm's rage faded, and its legs gave way.

"Kill it while it's burned out!" screamed Abaddon.

Jurano nodded. "Hey Kat, let's try that combo!"

Kathleen brandished her nodachi and used her semblance to rocket towards Jurano in a cyclone. She grabbed Jurano's hand as he electrified his chain scythe. An electrified cyclone made its way up to the Cerberus' remaining left and right heads and in no time at all both were sliced cleanly through. The beast's body started to dissipate into smoke, as all Grimm do when they pass.

Abaddon jumped down from the Grimm's back to check on his sister. "Emma, you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm good," Emma replied, dusting herself off. "Thanks for the save. But what about the fires around us? Left unchecked, this could still turn into a forest fire."

"Don't worry, we killed it fast enough to keep the fires here small, so the forest won't burn. Plus, this area is far away from the city, so it doesn't matter that much," Abaddon explained.

Kathleen and Jurano then joined them. Kathleen had just finished talking on her communicator before grabbing hold of Abaddon's hand.

"Our bullhead should be here in a little while. Although, I don't know if we've gotten all the Ghouls in the area," Kathleen said.

"We did," Jurano added. "I read the full report, and the mission only had less than ten confirmed Ghoul sightings in this area. And only within a certain radius. We're done here. I call dibs on the first shower though."

Kathleen smiled, but then something caught her attention. Her communicator was picking up radio chatter. She turned the volume up but couldn't understand who or what was speaking.

" _I may need to get closer to the source then,"_ she thought.

Kathleen started to walk away from her team, trying to locate the source of the chatter.

"Hey Kat, where ya goin?" Jurano asked.

"I'm looking into something." Kathleen continued to walk. She found that the further she walked along the edge of the ravine, the clearer the radio chatter became. With her team in tow, Kathleen walked about six meters and found a bloodied white mask next to a tree.

Abaddon picked up the mask to examine it. "It's a damaged White Fang mask."

Emma went to the other side of the tree and instantly recoiled. Abaddon grabbed her, pulled her close, and covered her eyes.

"You really can't stand gore," Abaddon stated.

Emma shook her head. Before them were the remains of several White Fang, their innards and body parts were strewn about the stained grass. Emma also covered her nose to shield it from the smell.

"Brutal…" Jurano walked through the carnage, noticing a small flashing red light coming from a mutilated torso. He knelt and carefully picked up a bloodstained handheld radio.

"Hey Abb, catch!" Jurano tossed the radio to his leader, who caught it in his free hand.

"Is this what you were looking into?" Abaddon asked Kathleen.

"Yeah," Kathleen answered. "I picked up its radio chatter. It was going across several channels for some reason."

Abaddon adjusted the frequency on the device until a female's voice came through crystal clear.

" _Hey! For the fifteenth time is anyone there?! I've been trying to contact you guys nonstop since we lost visual of the Ghouls. Remember, try to lure them somewhat close to the city or the combat school if you can, and capture any rebellious faunus you can find. If there are any huntsman in training nearby, let the Ghouls handle it. None of them have experience with those damn things. The less huntsman the better. We think there's also a Cadejo pair in the area so really keep your wits about yo-."_

"Was it worth it?" Abaddon asked.

" _What?_ _Who's this? Where's my tea-."_

"The White Fang you sent here are dead, killed by the same Grimm we just destroyed. The Ghouls crushed, Cerberus beheaded, and Cadejos humiliated. They were a noticeable distance from the city, but _nowhere near_ enough to cause widespread alarm. And even if your comrades were alive, I would've handled them myself anyway. Your little attempt failed miserably. So, I ask again, was it worth it?" Abaddon asked.

" _W-we…we won't be deterred…by the likes of y-you…. We are the White F-Fang a-and we will…"_

"You're scared, aren't you? Good. You should be quiet, before I decide to go for you as well," Abaddon threatened. "And it won't be pretty. It never was."

The radio stuttered into complete silence.

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

"You destroyed a fusion Grimm? That's impressive. Especially the fact that you exploited its weak point," Cinder mused.

After returning to Beacon, teams KAJE, MNCE, RWBY, and JNPR gathered in the dorm common room to tell each other of their missions. Emma and Neo shared one of the recliners while Cinder sat in another playing with her hair, Mercury was reading comics at a table with Emerald, Wiess, Ruby, and Yang, Blake took refuge in a large blue bean bag chair that someone left behind, Abaddon and Kathleen sat together on one of the couches, and one of the other tables was occupied by Jaune, Pyrrha, Ren, and a lightly snoring Nora. They were the only ones there, save a few students who were beginning to leave.

"I know right!" Ruby cheered. "Team RWBY is the best there is!"

"Fusion Grimm are very rare. They're only somewhat common on that dragon-shaped continent west of Atlas," Abaddon told them.

"How do you know that? Have you been there before?" Mercury asked.

"We all did: Me, Cinder, Abaddon, and General Vesuvius," Neo answered. "Although, we were near the coast."

"What about that place made the old man go with you?" Yang asked. "Couldn't you three have done it yourselves?"

"They usually don't tell you this, but the dragon continent is like a playground for the Grimm. We had to assist several nomad groups that were stuck there during their yearly trading pilgrimage. You could describe that place like this: you kill a few Grimm, more will rush at you like you just disturbed a beehive or an ant hill. You'll be overwhelmed in seconds. Plus, there's more Alphas and Majors and the like roaming those lands than anywhere else. We barely made it out," Cinder informed them.

"Yep. I killed ten Ursa Majors that day," Abaddon said. "It was awesome. But what Cinder's saying is that you _don't_ wanna go there."

"So, Cinder, what did you guys do all day?" Ruby asked.

"Oh us? We stayed on patrol inside the city with the local police," she said. "Kind of relaxing and nothing much to do though besides apprehending the occasional thief. Although we did catch a few White Fang. And while they were being arrested, one of them was muttering about Ghouls coming towards the city."

"Maybe the officers with you caught that and did something," Ren hoped.

"We'd all like that, but some of them have brains that make even the likes of Cardin look smart," Emerald added, causing the others to laugh. "It went largely unnoticed by everyone else."

"Yeah, but we had to deal with it," Kathleen said. "There were eight Ghouls in total, along with a Cadejo pair and a Goliath-sized Cerberus."

"Your kidding!" said Weiss.

"Nope! We crushed the Ghouls with boulders, outsmarted the Cadejos, and cut off the Cerberus' heads," Emma said happily. "But we also found a small squad of White Fang that had been slaughtered by the Grimm. We used their radio and learned that they had lured those Ghouls here, and the extra Grimm just tagged along for the ride."

"Weird that you guys have had White Fang encounters today, but not us," Blake said. "Seems too easy to me, like they wanted to be found out."

"But why would they want that? Seems strange," said Jaune.

"Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there," Abaddon said, pulling a blanket over his head and laying on Kathleen's lap. "For now, I'm taking a nap."


	33. Chapter 33

_Ch. 33_

"Status report! Soldier! I said give me a status report!" Desmond yelled.

He stood over two female White Fang; one had ram horns and was cowering with her knees pulled up to her chest on the floor of the communication room while the other had a panther tail and was comforting her comrade.

"Desmond, please! She's too frightened to speak and you're not helping!" The panther tailed faunus yelled back.

"What is going on here?!" screamed Corvus as he entered the room.

Desmond turned to Corvus. "Don't worry about it Lieutenant, this is my business."

"I know you sent a squad of our men out into the Emerald Forest, following a group of Ghouls," Corvus said.

Desmond didn't reply at first, he just stared at him with mild indifference.

"To be honest, that was very reckless," Corvus continued. "We already have a plan in place, with steps to follow. Gathering dust is one of our top priorities right now. We may both be somewhat on par in leadership, but your jurisdiction is with your team and your own operations, not sending _my_ men on suicide missions. So…you should-."

Corvus had no time to finish, as he moved his head to narrowly dodge a knife thrown his way. Despite the lieutenant being about five times his size, Desmond tackled him through the sheet metal door out of the room. Desmond stood up glaring while Corvus got up with no sign of being fazed by the sudden attack. His expression was unreadable behind his full-faced mask. Desmond dashed around Corvus, trying to get him where his guard was least effective. He found a spot: the Lieutenant's back left. Desmond produced a dagger from his coat and took the chance. Although, Corvus saw the red head coming and grabbed his face. He then smashed Desmond into the floor in front of him, then cocked his right fist back and plunged it into the cement near the boy's head. Corvus slowly pulled his fist out of the hole he made while Desmond just stared with wide eyes.

"Kid, we shouldn't be fighting. We're all comrades here, not enemies. Right?" Corvus raised his hand.

Desmond blinked several times, then took his comrade's hand with some hesitation. "Right."

"I'm sorry for attacking you there. I was upset about the results of that…operation, and I don't work too well with authority figures under stress," Desmond said as he got to his feet.

Corvus chuckled. "No shit. Just keep that impulse under control and you'll be fine in the future. Especially with the _important_ assignment, Adam has just for you. As for the rest of you, get back to what you were doing. Nothing to see here!"

Desmond failed to notice the large crowd of soldiers that they had attracted in the scuffle. He waited until they all cleared out to talk to the Lieutenant again.

"What assignment am I needed for Corvus?" asked Desmond.

"I'm not going to tell you yet, but I know you'll like it very much."

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

 _In the Beacon auditorium…_

"My fellow students, I know you have been looking forward to this, but it is with a heavy heart that I inform you that the Vytal Tournament is canceled for this year."

This announcement caused an uproar amongst the huntsmen in training.

Ozpin expected this but continued. "I am sorry, but as I have been informed the Amity Colosseum is currently out of commission. And the tournament wouldn't be the same without its grand stage. Although, the festival is still being held in the fairgrounds, and new additions have been made for your benefit. Again, I am sorry to bring such news, and I hope that you all, like the rest of the world, enjoy the festival."

Ozpin then left the microphone and began to exit with Glynda. The students also left, all the while groaning amongst one another.

"What do you think happened?"

"You think the Colosseum is malfunctioning or something?"

"Dammit, I was so ready to see some action this year?"

"Will we have to wait two more years? Freaking sucks!"

Ruby groaned. "I wanted to see weapons in action! And show off Crescent Rose!"

"What exactly would have to happen for something as advanced as the Amity Colosseum to malfunction? There's Atlas tech in there," Weiss wondered.

"Uh, remember, that's tech contributions from all kingdoms. Not just Atlas," Abaddon added. "And just like everyone else, they are far from perfect."

"So, what new additions do you think they've added?" Emma asked.

"We won't know until we find out," said Kathleen. "Let's go to the fairgrounds."

KAJE and RWBY traveled to the campus fairgrounds where the field was occupied by a multitude of stalls selling wares and food and offering various services. Even though the tournament was canceled, many people still strolled about, chatting merrily with one another. At one food stand, JNPR was being served bowls of noodles by a man who looked a lot similar to the owner of From Dust Till Dawn.

"Oi, JNPR! How's it going?" Jurano called out.

"Hey, guys!" Nora greeted. "We're just grabbing a bite to eat before we hit the carnival."

"Carnival?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, that's what was added to the festival," Pyrrha explained. "Half of the carnival will be here, while the other half will be in the city. Remember, Vytal is all about celebrating the union between the kingdoms of Remnant. There doesn't always have to be a fighting competition."

"But that's one of, if not the best, parts of the Vytal Festival. Many were hoping to see some ass kicking or show of their skills," Abaddon said. "Now it'll be another two years until that happens."

"I still think we'll wipe the floor with any of the teams we come across. No offense to the rest of you of course," Jurano boasted.

"You thinkin' you could beat us huh?" Sun and his team approached them, each of them carrying cotton candy resembling their team's colors.

"Yes. Yes, I do," Jurano replied.

"Come on guys. There's no need for any intense competition between friends," Ruby told them.

"True, but Sun insisted that we help him get stronger. Ever since he lost to some lizard faunus here in Vale he's been training a lot lately," Neptune told them.

"Great," Blake groaned.

"Hey Neptune, Sage, and Scarlet, could you three get my team and I some cotton candy too? If you don't mind that is," Abaddon asked.

"Sure. What about Sun?" Scarlet asked.

"I need to talk to him about his training. Gotta make sure he's doing it right," the boy told them.

"Gotcha. We'll be right back." Then the three left, leaving Sun with eight pairs of eyes on him.

"Don't worry guys, I kept my mouth shut. Mostly," said Sun.

"Sun, you're not overdoing it are you?" Blake asked.

"What? No, I'm fine. See?" Sun stretched his arms and winced, grabbing at the pain in his left shoulder.

"Dude, you're not training. You're _are_ overdoing it. That's called torturing your body," Abaddon explained. "That method is fine for some, but not for you."

Sun sighed. "I just thought that I needed to be a better fighter."

"No." Blake went up to Sun and flicked him on his nose. "You shouldn't be doing this just because you lost to a guy like Bantus. He's…different."

"She's right. You survived your first encounter and that's all that matters," said Abaddon.

"Yeah, take it easy," said Emma. "Abby and Kat can take care of him."

"Hopefully it's just me." Abaddon put a hand on Sun's chest. He concentrated his power and used it to quickly heal the monkey boy.

"There, good as new," Abaddon smiled. "Although, you need a spotter next time you wanna work your ass off. You hurt yourself like that again and I'll just let you deal with it."

"Alright, alright. I get it," Sun whined. "Thanks though."

Just then, Neptune, Sage, and Scarlet returned.

"Here's your cotton candy guys. And they match your team colors too, thought you'd like that." Neptune gave each member of team KAJE a bag of cotton candy. They had four colors mixed in them to represent each member: violet for Kathleen, dark red for Abaddon, gray for Jurano, and blue-green for Emma.

"Thanks, guys," Kathleen said before popping a bit of cotton candy into her mouth.

"You're welcome. Also, there's a guy here who followed us from the cotton candy stall," Sage told them. "He said he knows you."

"Who could it be?" Emma said with her mouth full.

From behind Sage came a boy about their age. He had somewhat dark skin and short black hair with an undercut. He had two large bangs on either side of his face with green highlights on the ends. He also had a green headband adorned with zig-zagging patterns, purple eyes, and a silver earring on his right ear. He wore a grey sleeveless shirt under a dark jean jacket, dark jeans with grey armored padding covering the entirety of his shins, and dark brown boots. He also had two dark green belts on both of his forearms, a pair of goggles around his neck, a brown utility pack on his right hip, black gloves that covered all but his pointer fingers, a pair of large mechanical cylinders on his back, and green tattoos of a joker's card on both his shoulders.

"What's uuuuuupppp!"

"No fucking way!" Abaddon yelled.

"Oh my god bitch!" Jurano screamed.

Both boys tackled the newcomer in a bear hug. The others, except Emma and Kathleen, looked confused.

"Kathleen, who is that?" Weiss asked.

"Remember when Abaddon and Jurano talked about the Psycho Protocol," Kathleen said. "That's Jack, the guy who made it and the craziest person you'll ever know."

"Wow, I didn't think someone crazy would look like that," said Yang.

"Didn't think you'd see me here did ya guys?" Jack laughed.

"Yeah, we thought you would stay on Marrowshin working as a mechanic after graduation," Emma said.

Jack chuckled. "I'm still a mechanic, but I'm here helping my uncle Bartley and other people with mechanical issues."

Jack waved at the old man working in the food stall they were working in. "Hey, uncle. I'm gonna go on break for a while."

The old man waved back and nodded.

"Didn't even know you had an uncle in Vale dude," Jurano said.

"Excuse me guys," Jaune interrupted, "but what's the Psycho Protocol?"

"Huh? Oh, you guys must be the new friends I've been told about." Jack took a bow. "I'm Jack Ioculator, an old friend of team KAJE and the Jester of Marrowshin. And if I remember correctly, you lot are Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long, Pyrrha Nikos, Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, and Lie Ren. And the ones who lead me here are Sun Wukong, Neptune Vasillias, Scarlet David, and Sage Ayana. Nice to meet you."

The others greeted Jack as well.

"And speaking of the Psycho Protocol, it's a list of a lot of bullshit tasks that I started with these two idiots. They range from embarrassing to outright crazy. In fact," Jack continued as he pulled a fresh paper scroll from inside his jean jacket, "I have an updated version right here. Just finished it the other day."

"Hand it over man." Abaddon held out his hand as Jack gave him the scroll. He opened it up wide enough for him, Kathleen, Jurano, and Emma to gaze at it. The more they read, the more their expressions changed. Abaddon and Jurano were on the verge of hysterical laughter, Kathleen had a combination of shock, disgust, and irritation, and Emma looked like she was close to fainting.

"Ugghh! You are the worst!" Kathleen huffed.

"Alright, the rest of you kids come see this."

Jack laid the parchment on one of the stalls dining boards, in front of team RWBY's seats. All members of RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN huddled to read the parchment. It only took a minute or two for some of them to show reactions.

"Oh, my word," Pyrrha said, covering her mouth.

"I think I'm gonna be sick." Jaune clutched his stomach.

"Yang, what does that mean?" Ruby asked.

"You must never know," Yang replied with wide eyes.

"Absolutely unacceptable!" Weiss whined.

"This is insane!" Scarlet exclaimed.

Sage gazed at the Abaddon, Jack, and Jurano. "I assume you've done some of these tasks."

Jurano rubbed his nose. "Task 25: Sabotage the girl's locker room showers so instead of water coming out the shower heads, its urine. That one was fun."

Emma punched Jurano in the chest. "Dammit, that was you?!"

"Task 34: Put laxatives in the teacher's lounge, more specifically any food or liquids they have. Lock the teacher's restroom and the door to the lounge once they're inside. Have their predicament put on blast for all to see via a hidden camera connected to all the monitors in school. Special conditions: Get the principal in the lounge and hang a sign outside the lounge that says, ' _Gotta shit?_ ' I only allowed a certain number of professors to be pardoned from the same fate," Abaddon said evilly.

"Task 82: Flirt with the most despicable and spoiled student in school, discover their fetishes, and play with them. Record them on video without them knowing and either put the recording online, play it during school hours, or play the audio in places for people to hear. Description of task differs on whether the victim is girl or guy. It is your choice of where and how to publicize the video or audio. It can be more than one victim. Special condition: Screw them, if you know what I mean. Using protection is strongly advised. The bitch I did that to deserved it after the shit she pulled. Thanks to that Emma didn't have to worry about being bullied by Sarah again. I had to come up with that task on the fly," Jack proclaimed.

"Wow you guys have a lot of guts," Neptune told the three boys.

"Or they're all equally crazy," Blake added.

"You could've just broken her legs! I know I would!" Nora yelled.

"Is that why Sarah would get nervous whenever she saw Emma? You didn't have to go that far," Kathleen said.

"I appreciate it, but yeah what she said," Emma chimed.

"Yeah, but no one fucks with my besties. So, I go as far as I want, no matter how ashamed others were of me or how much she threatened to get back at me. Plus, her performance wasn't bad, a bit of an amateur though," Jurano continued. "But I got a woman now! And she's serious!"

Jurano raised an eyebrow. "Really? Who would be crazy enough to get serious with our best man?"

Jack smiled. "Well, its part of the reason I came over here. You all gotta come with me to the city. I have a surprise for you."


	34. Chapter 34

_Ch. 34_

Like the rest of the world, the city of Vale was alight with decoration and celebration. Parades started, shops went on sales, and faunus and humans alike roamed the streets. In the main city square, located in the commercial district, preparations for a special event were being made.

"Hey, make sure those barriers are straight?" said a woman pointing at a man in a black suit with a red tie.

This woman had gunmetal grey eyes and short white hair with black highlights and parted bangs. She had fair skin and wore a decorated black collar attached to a grey sleeveless shirt and shorts one piece over a full body blue and black outfit with mid-length sleeves and black boots. She also had lightweight dark gray armor plates on her hips and below her shoulders along with two earrings on each ear.

She stood in the middle of the square on a mountain of boxes to gain a height advantage and survey all the men under her jurisdiction. She tapped away on the enlarged scroll in her hands until a familiar voice called out to her.

"Hey babe, I'm back!"

The woman turned around to see Jack with his friends tagging along. She immediately jumped down from her pedestal and embraced him.

"You've been gone for five hours! I hope you don't expect me to orchestrate all this by myself," she told Jack.

"Naw babe, I wouldn't do that to you." Jack then turned to his friends. "Guess who this fine thang is."

"Hmmmmm, did she go to Altair with us?" Emma asked.

"She did for a while," Jack answered.

"You sure, cause I know damn well I'd remember a girl as fine as her," Jurano said.

Abaddon nudged him in the ribs. "Careful dude, Velvet could hear you, and you know we faunus have very good hearing."

"She seems very familiar, but I can't put my finger on it," said Kathleen.

The women strode up to Kathleen and said, "You've grown a lot since I last saw you Morning Glory. Same for you Jingle Bells."

Kathleen's and Emma's eyes widened as they both gasped. "Izzaline!"

Both girls tackled Izzaline in a group hug.

"Say what?!" Both Abaddon and Jurano screamed.

"I can't believe it's you!" Kathleen exclaimed. "I thought you left with your mom to go to Atlas seven years ago. When did you get back?"

"Well, it's a long story, but I got back a month or two after you guys left for Beacon," Izzaline said. "The only ones there to greet me were Jack and a few old friends. Jack was the only one who figured out it was me on his own."

"Yep, expert detective here at your service," Jack boasted.

"But Izzy, when did you get so fiiiinneeee?" Jurano's question was answered when someone abruptly grabbed his ear.

"Jurano, are you flirting?" Velvet asked as she held onto her boyfriend's ear.

"Ouch! No, I'm just being honest I promise," Jurano told her.

"Hmph!" Velvet turned away from him, clearly upset.

"Oh, no. Velvet please don't be mad at me." Jurano went behind Velvet and wrapped his arms around her waist, trying desperately to fix the situation while the others continued to converse with Izzaline.

"He's right ya know Izzy," Abaddon said. "You look great, but it should be expected since seven years have passed."

"Exactly, I can't look like the shy, scared little girl you all remember," she told them. "Now, we should get ready for the event we set up. Didn't you have some other people with you?"

"Yeah, but we got separated on the way here cause they wanted to see the parade. What event are you cooking up here?" Abaddon asked, looking around the area being set up. "And with Junior's men?"

"Oh we hired them from him," Jack said. "We heard about the Vytal Tournament being canceled, and we can't have a Vytal festival without some fighting competition, so we got info about Junior and his services, acquired some helping hands, and set everything up."

"I'm about to be done. Junior's men have already finished putting up the barricades around the arena, along with a few decorations and three sets of bleachers, plus there will be cameras showing the event all around the city," Izzaline told them. "Annnnddddd, done!"

Jack pumped his right fist. "Alright, let's get this shit started!"

 _ **XXXXXXX**_

After getting in contact with RWBY and JNPR, Jack and Izzaline stood on a small stage set up on one end of the town square. Many citizens and students had gathered around, carrying fliers that advertised the event.

"Welcome ladies and gentlemen! As you've heard, the Vytal Tournament has been canceled, but will be back next year!"

As Jack expected, a large majority of the crowd booed in response. "Although, just like you, we didn't feel like waiting that long to see some action! The slashing of blades! The clashing of fists! The close calls and epic finishes! That's what we wanna see, am I right people!"

The mood of the crowd transformed into great excitement as there were hoots and hollers up and down the nearby streets. "Now, since you people hold a special place in our hearts, you will be the first ones to get a sneak peek at what's in store for you next year! The upcoming fights you will see here aren't as big as the original tournament, but we'll do the best we can to accommodate your tastes for heated combat! Now everybody, let's get ready to rumble!"

Jack pulled the microphone away from his face, smiling widely at the crowd as they screamed in delight. "Who's the first matchup?"

"It's….Ruby and Emma," Izzaline answered as she set up two icons of the huntsmen on her tablet.

Jurano got back on his microphone. "Alright, you crazy kids here's our first matchup! Ruby Rose of team RWBY versus Emma Trennair of team KAJE!"

A few seconds after being called, both girls descended the few steps into the square arena.

"Ready for round two?" Emma asked, brandishing her Umbra Claws in dual scythe form.

"I'll be the victor this time," Ruby assured Emma.

"BEGIN!"

Ruby made the first move. She rushed forward, spinning like a drill in midair. Emma teleported at the last second, reappearing on the other end of the arena. Ruby fired in her direction, but Emma teleported once more. She attacked Ruby's right side, but the scythe-wielding brunette saw this coming and flipped over her. She smacked her opponent with the back blunt side of Crescent Rose. Emma lost her balance for a moment, then regained her footing. The faunus started firing her pistols at Ruby, who effortlessly blocked the bullets by quickly twirling her scythe in her hands. Changing her Umbra Claws into scythe form, Emma spun her weapon in the same fashion Ruby did and threw it at her. Ruby was surprised by this tactic. She hit the scythe head-on, spiking it up into the air. Unbeknownst to her, this was a distraction. Emma teleported to Ruby's back side. Once more caught by surprise, the brunette tried to react, only to be elbowed in the back. Emma then followed up with a low kick, knocking Ruby off her feet and loosening her grip on her weapon. Emma grabbed Crescent Rose and planted its large blade into the ground nearby. She then caught her scythe as it came back down and swiftly changed modes, freezing with the barrels of both her guns aimed in close range at Ruby.

"And that's the match!"

The crowd let out large applause. Emma pulled Crescent Rose out of the ground and handed it to Ruby, who had just gotten to her feet.

"Awwww! I was sure I was gonna win this time," Ruby whined.

"It's ok Ruby, if you won every fight, then you wouldn't really be learning anything. As huntsman in training, we must learn from our mistakes. That's what Grandpa told me once," Emma told her.

"True," Ruby agreed.

Both girls left the arena for the next battle.

"Next battle, Velvet Scarlatina of team CFVY versus Bolin Hori of team ABRN!"

"Jurano, hold this for me please." Velvet handed her weapon, a camera, to her boyfriend.

"Alright. Good luck out there babe," Jurano said as Velvet stepped down into the arena.

Bolin Hori swung his staff to and fro as he faced Velvet. He grinned, thinking that he had an advantage since Velvet didn't have her weapon with her.

"You sure you can beat me without a weapon?" Bolin asked heartily.

"I'm pretty confident I can," Velvet answered, getting into a fighting stance.

"Aaand begin!"

Bolin swung his staff to strike Velvet quickly at her side, only for her to duck under its swing. She then kicked at his stomach with one leg, but Bolin dodged to his right and swung his staff at her other leg to trip her. Velvet saw this coming and spin with the attack to allow the limb he hit to come back and smack him in the side of his face. Bolin fell on his behind a few feet away.

" _She hasn't used her weapon since we started, and yet I find myself outmatched in close combat_ ," Bolin thought. " _If she doesn't have a weapon, I can use that to my advantage and keep my distance while striking at any openings with my staff."_

With this plan in mind, Bolin stood back up. He once again was the first to attack, coming in close to elbow Velvet in the face. She put up her arms to guard, but this attack was a feint. Bolin dashed back, still with his staff's range of attack, and mustered some of his strength to strike Velvet in the stomach with a powerful jab from his weapon. Velvet clutched her stomach, reeling from the pain. Bolin took advantage of this, striking at Velvet from multiple angles. She managed to escape from the onslaught to recover. Bolin kept his guard up, smiling as if he'd already won since a large chunk of Velvet's aura was already gone. Velvet collected herself, getting back into her battle stance. Unfortunately for Bolin, Velvet attacked first. She became aggressive in her advance, easily breaking through Bolin's defenses and knocking his weapon clean out of his hands.

" _My semblance_!" Bolin thought.

Velvet attacked once more with a straight forward punch. Bolin put up his arms to block, but Velvet caught him by surprise. She used her right leg to lower his arms and drop his guard. Bolin counter-attacked with a quick jab and missed. Velvet ducked down below and wrapped her left leg around his neck, bouncing up into the air and spinning him around wildly before sending him headfirst into the ground. Velvet landed nearby, dusting off her hands.

"And there you go! Good game!"

"Oh, sorry about that," she apologized, seeing that her opponent was barely conscious.

As Velvet exited the arena, one of Bolin's teammates, Nadir Shiko, picked him up and carried him out.

"Holy crap Velvet, that was awesome!" Jurano cheered.

"That looks like my technique," Kathleen said to Velvet. "I didn't think anyone else could do that."

"Well, I can thanks to my semblance," Velvet replied.

After Velvet's fight, three more one on one matches commenced. The first of those three was Jaune vs Brawnz Ni from team BRNZ, with Jaune barely making the win. Next was Nora vs Sun, and despite her strength advantage and somewhat unpredictable style, Sun outmaneuvered her and claimed victory. Then the third fight, Emerald vs Dew Gayl from team NDGO, who managed to defeat Emerald much to Mercury's surprise. Then there was the final match.

"Now ladies and gentlemen! The final bout! This one's gonna be a team battle! And a classic one at that! Are you ready forrrrr…Boys! Versus! Girlllllsss!"

The people of Vale that were watching hollered with extreme excitement. Everyone loved a classic battle of the sexes in any sort of competition or sport.

"Her we go! These four heavy hitters need to come up please! Arslan Altan of team ABRN and Yang Xiao Long of team RWBY versus Yatsuhashi Daichi of team CFVY and Abaddon Rizer of team KAJE! Well, we've got a spectacular battle right here folks, both sides have a team leader!"

All four fighters faced each other in the arena.

"Don't hold back just because we're ladies Fido," Yang mused.

"No promises goldilocks," Abaddon replied, then looked at Yatsuhashi. "You got my back big guy?"

"I'll do my best," Yatsuhashi replied.

"Hey, Arslan let's teach these boys a lesson!" Yang exclaimed.

Arslan merely smiled and nodded.

"Aaaand begin!"

Arslan's rope dart immediately lashed out and wrapped around Abaddon's right arm. She pulled him towards her with her right arm, cocking her left arm back to strike. The boy had gone with it, and when he was within striking distance, he flipped himself over her. He landed behind her and yanked her towards him. Abaddon punched Arslan in the gut, but she managed to kick him in the face as a tradeoff. They flew away from each other, both having focused their aura into their strikes. Meanwhile, Yatsuhashi had some difficulty keeping up with Yang. Her punches came fast, and he either blocked with his great sword or parried her strikes. In the last parry, he smacked her hard with the flat of his blade. Yang fell to the ground, dazed. She shook her head as she stood, recovering from the blow. She regained her senses in time to sidestep a downward strike from Yatsuhashi's sword. Her rebuttal took the form of a roundhouse kick to her opponent's shin. This momentarily crippled Yatsuhashi's poise, allowing her to punch him with a semblance enhanced punch. To her surprise, he caught her fist with one hand, albeit still taking some damage. He then flung her at Arslan, who Abaddon had just jumped away from in time to avoid being sandwiched between the two girls. After the impact, they both tumbled to the ground.

"Ugghhh, this big guy's quicker than I thought," Yang groaned, rubbing her head.

"I have an idea," Arslan told her, finally speaking. "How about we concentrate our attacks and knock out one at a time? You get up close like you've already been doing while I do ranged attacks."

"Great thinking girl!" Yang told her. "Here I go!"

Yang assaulted Yatsuhashi once more, staying on the move while avoiding his sword swipes. Arslan faced Abaddon again but didn't engage him right away. This seemed a bit odd to him, but he mostly ignored it. He unsheathed his short swords and attacked. Arslan mainly evaded him. She would shoot fireballs, but they all missed him.

" _She's missing all her shots, yet I'm not really trying. Something's going on here_ ," Abaddon thought. " _Wait, isn't Yatsuhashi_ -. "

Just then Yatsuhashi's large frame flew past Abaddon's head. He crashed into one of the barriers, greatly damaging it. Abaddon looked at Yang, who's outstretched fist was smoking.

"Heh, so that's what was going on. Nice plan," Abaddon told them.

"You wanna give up now Fido? We've got you cornered," Yang said.

"And you're not getting a handicap," Arslan added.

Abaddon chuckled. "Never said I needed or wanted one."

He combined his four swords into their dual great sword forms, then combined those into Obsidian Fang's third transformation: a large double-edged ultra-great sword.

"Well, ladies, let's see how you handle these great sword skills!"

Yang went at him full speed, with Abaddon going on the defensive. The blonde rocketed forward with a hard punch, but Abaddon dashed past her fist and backhanded her with his right fist whilst blocking a fireball with his left shield gauntlet. With his large sword in his left hand, the boy twisted around and hit Yang, throwing her through the air.

"That tactic won't work. Try something else," Abaddon told them with a smirk.

Yang skidded to a halt next to Arslan. Arslan eyed Yatsuhashi's sword on the ground next to Yang. She went over and picked it up.

"Catch."

Arslan threw the sword at Abaddon. He caught the sword in his right hand and stabbed the blade into the ground.

"Damn. What metal did Yatsu use to make this sword," Abaddon grumbled. "It's much heavier than mine."

"You sure you wanna fight with that Abaddon? It seems like a burden," Yang said.

"Well, the weight of this is nothing compared to a Cerberus' foot," Abaddon replied, patting the pommel of Yatsuhashi's weapon. "It's not nearly enough to make me lose against you two."

Yang and Arslan started blasting fireballs and explosive blasts. Abaddon used his sword to block them, all the while advancing on the girls. He jumped into the air, then came down with a spinning blade slam. Yang and Arslan managed to avoid the shockwave, only for Abaddon to dash straight towards Arslan. He kneed her straight in the gut and quickly slashed her aura several times with his sword. Arslan tried to counter with one aura concentrated attack. Abaddon dodged it, then hit her with his own concentrated punch, depleting her aura and sending her crashing into one of the barriers as well. After dealing with Arslan, Abaddon collapsed his sword and did a quick turnaround. He raised one gauntlet in time to block an explosive punch from Yang. She sent another punch his way, but he pushed it aside and kneed her in the face multiple times with his left knee. Yang reached to grab his knee. Abaddon instead wrapped his left leg around her arm and used it as leverage to kick her in the face with his right. He then launched himself off her, knocking her to the ground in the process. Although, Yang wasn't beaten yet. She stood back up and fully activated her semblance. Her glowing red eyes were dwarfed only by her fire-like mane. Abaddon smiled as he was ready to take on everything the blonde could give him. Yang's onslaught came fast and strong. Although, Abaddon didn't have trouble keeping up.

" _Why did she wait 'till now to use her semblance?"_ Abaddon thought. _"If she had used it earlier before my defenses grew, she had the possibility to knock me down."_

Abaddon deflected each punch, as they were strong but extremely telegraphed. Yang's advance didn't last long though, and Abaddon caught her final punch. The added shotgun blast barely put a dent in his aura. Having run out of steam, Yang's semblance deactivated. The boy then peppered Yang with a multitude of punches before knocking her out with an uppercut. Yang fell back on the ground unconscious.

"And the battle hath ended! Boyyysssss wiiiiiin!"

The crowd went wild, even more than ever before. Nevertheless, some were disappointed with the results.

"Abby!" Emma jumped on Abaddon's back like usual. "I knew you'd win!"

"Well, I didn't wanna knock Yang out, but I guess I hit her too hard," Abaddon said as he walked over to Yang and picked her up bridal style. "Can't just leave her on the ground like that."

Abaddon walked back to his group as Jack wrapped everything up.

"Okay people, that's all you get for this rodeo! This is just a sneak peek to the actual thing! I know you loved it, and you want more, but that would ruin the actual Vytal Competition! So, goodbye for now! We love you all, and hope you have a beautiful Vytal Festival! "


	35. Chapter 35

_Ch. 35_

 _Next day…_

"Our first _date_ , and she's almost half an hour late."

Abaddon sat at a table at Tea Guru, waiting for Kathleen for a night out. He tied some of his hair in a small ponytail, with two large bangs hanging off both sides of his face. He wore a short sleeve grey shirt under a checkered red and black long-sleeved flannel shirt that was halfway opened, and sleeves rolled up. He also wore a pair of blue jeans and dark grey sneakers.

"Hey, sorry I'm late."

Kathleen finally arrived. She was wearing a dark navy-blue sleeveless shirt under a short sleeved unbuttoned white blouse with black trim, black shorts, and black shoes. She also had light pink lipstick and her newly done eyelashes really brought out her violet-blue eyes.

" _Dear lord, I am not worthy,"_ Abaddon immediately thought.

"Damn, could those shorts be any shorter?" Abaddon joked.

"Well, it is our first date," Kathleen replied. "And I wanted to look presentable."

"Presentable? You look amazing!"

"Thanks! And you look handsome." Kathleen grabbed one of Abaddon's hands. "Come on, let's go to the carnival."

They walked deeper into the downtown area until they found the Vale Park where the other carnival was held, besides the one in the Beacon fairgrounds. Abaddon tried to buy both their tickets, but Kathleen had insisted on buying her own. They tried the water gun booth, seeing who could get the biggest prize first. Abaddon managed to win, earning a giant purple stuffed panda. It had a zipper for a hidden pocket on its belly and backpack straps on its back. Abaddon decided to put it on, while Kathleen giggled at how much it dwarfed him in size. They played a game of suction cup darts, and despite Abaddon's best efforts to aim his, Kathleen was faster and won one of the best prizes they had: A hat shaped in the likeness of a Beowulf. Afterward they played several more games before finally sitting down at a wooden picnic to eat.

"Yeah, that hit the spot," said Abaddon as he happily finished his nachos.

"You act like you haven't eaten all day," Kathleen told him as she threw away the cone to her first wad of cotton candy and grabbed another.

"Because I only ate breakfast, then worked out for a while, took a shower, got dressed, then left for the city." Abaddon threw away his food container in a nearby trashcan. "Kat, let me get some cotton candy."

"No, go get your own," she said as she pulled it away from him.

Unfortunately for her, Abaddon knew a way to change her mind. He started to whimper, wagging his tail and having his ears pointed down.

Kathleen chuckled and ate a piece of cotton candy. "That's not gonna work on me. You're not as cute as Emma."

"So, I'm cute huh?" Abaddon asked.

"No, that's not what I- "

Before she knew it, a small black tentacle grabbed a large chunk of her candy from behind her back. It zipped away into Abaddon's hand before Kathleen could grab it.

"Hey!"

Kathleen reached to grab the candy from his left hand, but Abaddon used his right hand to hold back one of her arms. She continued to gain ground though, laughing all the while. Although, as Abaddon kept leaning back to keep his stolen goods out of Kathleen's reach, he lost balance and fell. Kathleen fell with him onto the ground and landed on top of him. Seeing that she was within reach of her goal, Kathleen quickly grasped at it. Abaddon expected this and immediately stuffed the wad of candy into his mouth. Both Immediately erupted into outright laughter.

"Whoa Kat, you and Abb should get a room. We're in a public place," said a familiar voice.

Jurano looked down on them, holding a drink in his right hand and Velvet's hand in the other. He wore a green short sleeve shirt, a bead necklace, brown Capri cargo shots, brown sneakers, and a burgundy fleece jacket tied around his waist. Velvet wore a cream-colored blouse with jean shorts, black tights, and black shoes.

Kathleen blushed. "Maybe I like laying here."

"Hahahaha! Come on Kat, we can _talk_ about that later," Abaddon said as he and Kathleen stood up and dusted themselves off. "So, what've you guys been doing?"

"Well we rode a couple of rides, played a few games, and we just finished eating minutes before we found you two," Velvet explained.

"I wanted to try that hammer game. Ya'know, the one where you use a mallet to send a little bar into a bell at the top of a board. The grand prize was already taken. Was that you Abaddon?" Jurano asked.

Abaddon shrugged. "It would have been if I didn't hear a certain hammer-wielding ginger screaming her own name at the top of her lungs. As soon as that happened, I left the waiting line for the grand prize."

"Shit I would too, to be honest," Jurano replied. "So, what do you two plan on doing now?"

"You could come with us to the Ferris wheel," Velvet told them.

"Thanks, Velvet, but we'll pass. Besides, I want this amazon all to myself." Abaddon's words made Kathleen's face blush hard.

"Oooooooo," Velvet giggled.

Jurano chuckled. "Sounds kinda corny to me."

Abaddon flicked him off in response.

"He's not the only corny boy here. Come on Jurano, let's go. Have a nice night guys," Velvet said as they began walking away.

"Alright Abb, tell me the details later."

"No promises bro."

After Jurano and Velvet had gone, Kathleen hooked her arm around Abaddon's.

"So where do you plan on taking me?" Kathleen asked.

Abaddon smiled. "It's a place Jurano and I found when we were doing our thing a while back. The day you asked me not to get arrested. We can reach it through the park."

The boy grabbed their things and lead his date through the crowds of people, deeper into the park. They walked until they were essentially away from the carnival and in the more quiet and forested portion of the area. In one thick patch of brush and trees lay a large boulder. Abaddon moved the boulder, exposing a large wooden door underneath.

"Jurano and I were hiding in these woods from a couple we pranked," Abaddon told Kathleen. "The boyfriend was so furious he started firing at us with a gun, but we still just ran and laughed. I was planning to dig a hiding spot under this boulder but found this."

He lifted the heavy door and held it open.

"Here." Abaddon created a baseball-sized light orb in his left hand and handed it to Kathleen. She was hesitant at first, not sure whether the orb would vanish or not in her possession but decided to take it anyway. Its brightness and size didn't change as it levitated a few inches above her palm. Also, she felt her aura not only strengthen somewhat, but also a feeling of comfortable warmth flowed through her fingertips, up her arm, and through her body.

" _Wow,"_ she thought.

"Ladies first," Abaddon told her. "Don't worry, it's a twelve-foot drop. Not a problem for us."

Kathleen lightly hopped into the opening, landing softly on solid ground. Abaddon jumped down as well with the door slamming shut behind him. He then grabbed a flat metal rod from a nearby wall and barred the entrance before joining Kathleen.

"Alright, now for another spectacle."

Abaddon extinguished the light orb. There was a brief period of darkness, but then another source of light had shown itself. They were in a circular tunnel. Its walls, covered in roots and shrubbery, were also dotted with clusters of glowing blue-green dahlias.

"Bioluminescent flowers," Kathleen said out loud. She put a hand over one of the flower clusters and they grew brighter, adding a purple hue to edges of their petals. "Are they-?"

"Copying the color of your aura? Yes." Abaddon touched one dahlia with his right index finger. Its color changed into a smoothly mixing swirl of red, white, and black. He then plucked that flower and one of the ones Kathleen touched and placed them in her hair.

"They're beautiful. But…wouldn't they lose their luminescence once plucked?" Kathleen wondered.

"Not really," said Abaddon. "We took three from here and found out that the flowers keep their light for about two weeks before losing it. The flowers will be the same color and stay alive like a normal plant, but only replanting them down here will make the flowers glow again."

He grabbed Kathleen's hand. "This is nothing. You'll like what's at the end of this tunnel."

Abaddon put his free hand out in front of him and started to concentrate his power. A few seconds later, a mass of twilight energy expanded in front of them and formed a large horsed sized wolf. It howled like a real wolf before bowing in front of them as a signal to mount it. Abaddon got on first, with Kathleen sitting right behind him. She held on tight to him as their steed bounded down the tunnel. At first, Kathleen thought they would hit the ceiling of the tunnel due to the wolf's height but later found out that the path widened as they continued forward. They traveled about ten miles, which only took a few minutes due to the speed at which they were traveling. The wolf began slowing down as they reached the end of the tunnel. The two huntsmen got off the wolf, which then dematerialized. They approached another wooden door. Abaddon opened the door and light poured in from the other side. Kathleen briefly shielded her eyes. After adjusting to the brightness, Abaddon pulled her inside and closed the door behind them. They were now in a short stone hallway that lead to a regular black door. A single lamp was nailed to the wall on the right.

Abaddon opened the door for Kathleen once more. She entered a huge living space with reddish brown walls and a light-colored carpet decorated with three dark brown couches arranged in a u-shape pointed towards the right where a huge plasma screen television hung on the wall. There were also a few blue flower vases, a large wooden cupboard, a filled five-shelf bookcase and a short wooden table in the middle of the room with a vase and a few candles on it. There was also another door on the left side of the room and a staircase opposite the one they came through.

"I'm guessing this is the man cave," Kathleen surmised.

"Well, kind of," Abaddon said as he tossed their prizes onto the couch. "This place is an abandoned local dust shop, in the northwest portion of the city where the upper-class citizens live. Remember that bookstore I went into when Neo was suffocating me? The couple who own the place have been using this hideout for years. When Jurano and I came here the first time, the husband, Mr. Florence, was here placing those flower vases. The other door connects to a tunnel that leads to the basement of his store. He allowed us to use this place as a hangout."

"Neat. But the furniture here is of the expensive kind. How did they afford all this and the electricity to power this place?" Kathleen asked.

"They just use it. Their son is part of the Vale Council, so he's kind of rich. This hangout is the basement of his private property or vacation and relaxation home he bought. They said he rarely comes here anymore since he's been busy with his family and work," Abaddon explained. "We're on the third basement floor. The second floor is the game room filled with arcade games, the first is a training room and armory. Then there's the main ground floor and the two floors above it which has a dining hall, five bedrooms, four baths, and a family den."

"As always, you really love to make connections," Kathleen told him.

Abaddon led her to the wall next to the stairs. A single coat hanger sat on the surface. The boy turned it sideways and a small section of the wall opened, revealing an elevator.

"Congrats. Not even Jurano knows about this elevator. When I used it to race him upstairs, he thought I used my twilight powers to teleport."

The duo went into the elevator and rode it to the top floor. They exited into a huge ballroom with many draped circular tables with chairs, large ornate glass window arches, and a rounded ceiling. A long rectangular table stood in the middle of the room. The room was dim, thanks to some low light lanterns above the arches.

"Good grief, where are you taking me?" Kathleen huffed. "I thought we were gonna stay downstairs and watch a movie. I would've been perfectly content with that."

"Almost there Kat."

Abaddon continued to lead Kathleen. He went up to one of the windows, opening a door panel to the balcony that surrounded the outside of that floor. He brought her up a short flight of stairs to the roof. It was a small garden with several flowerbeds filled with the same kinds of plants that Abaddon saw around Cinder back at Florence's greenhouse.

"This is one spectacular greenhouse," Kathleen said in wonder.

"This is Ms. Florence's personal greenhouse. The one at her store, visitors must pay to get in and she sells the flowers in that one. Over here."

Another door in the greenhouse lead to a small balcony. Once outside, the view took Kathleen's breath away. The building was tall, like some of the other buildings around them, but they happened to be uphill. This allowed them a view of most of the city.

Kathleen hopped up and sat on the railing. "I can see most of the city from here, the lights from the carnival, the Ferris wheel, even Beacon up the river. This view is indescribably beautiful!"

Abaddon sat next to her. "And its gonna get better in 3…2…1."

A loud screeching noise filled the air as a firework rocket flew from somewhere in the city and exploded high above into a shower of orange sparks.

"I didn't want our date to finish without seeing the fireworks," Abaddon told Kathleen as they watched more rockets being popped off in the sky, now exploding into different shapes and colors.

"Well, I'd say you did somewhat great." Kathleen then noticed something out the corner of her eye. "Except there's cotton candy stuck in your hair."

"Aww shit! Where?!" The boy frantically felt around his head for it. "I don't feel it."

"Hehehehe. It's riiiiiiggggghhhhhttt." Kathleen reached to the back of his head. "Here."

Faster than Abaddon could even react, Kathleen pulled him into a kiss. Abaddon was caught off guard but inevitably submitted. It was a warm embrace that ended much too soon to Kathleen's liking.

"Why'd you stop?" Kathleen asked, both her hands holding Abaddon's cheeks.

Abaddon chuckled. "Cause you surprised me. I wanted to make the first move."

"Well, it won't be the first, but go ahead."

And just as the last volley of fireworks lit the sky, Abaddon pulled her in close this time for a kiss. A much-needed closure for the both of them as their day came to an end.

.


End file.
